Financial news

Bulgaria's Financial Supervision Commission decided on Wednesday to peg at 10 per cent the quantity of shares floated by a single issuer that can be acquired by one of the local pension insurance companies or its supplementary pension insurance arms. The pension firms and their supplementary pension divisions are also barred from jointly acquiring equity in a particular issuer that qualifies them to directly or indirectly appoint more than half of the issuer's managing board or to influence decisively in any way decisions related to the issuer's operation.

Bulgaria’s minister of regional development and public works Mr. Valentin Tzerovski and the leader of EC’s delegation to Bulgaria Mr. Dimitris Kurkulas signed contracts for building of waste waters purifying stations in the towns of Stara Zagora and Dimitrovgrad. The projects will receive a EUR 32 549 766 financing under the ISPA programme. The co-financing from the budget will be in the amount of EUR 4 mln, and another EUR 6 mln will be provided by EIB.

It will be possible to send tax returns via the Internet from next year on, sources from the General Tax Directorate (GTD) informed. The service will be accessible for physical persons from January and thereafter, for the firms. The tax returns will be filled in directly on the website of the GTD. Only an electronic signature is needed in order to use the service.

Privatization

Czech companies, part of the official delegation to Sofia, led by the president Vaclav Klaus showed interest in the prospective privatisation of Bulgaria's military-industry companies. The news broke yesterday during talks between the Czech businesses and their Bulgarian counterparts at the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA). At present only Dunarit of Rousse and VMZ of Sopot are remaining for privatisation, but they are experiencing financial hardship, experts commented.

Companies

Bulgaria has contracted Eurocopter, a wholly-owned subsidiary of EADS, to procure a fleet of Cougar helicopters for the Balkan state's armed forces. Aviation experts said the armed forces will seek the delivery over the next couple of years of up to 18 helicopters, including a pair of anti-submarine helicopters for the navy. Eurocopter beat to the USD 150 mln supply contract, tendered earlier this month, big hitters like Sikorsky of the U.S. and Italy's Agusta.

35 new companies for building and maintenance of consumer gas installations have been established in Sofia, Overgas’s HR director Mr. Evgenii Gradinar said when presenting the results of a project under the PHARE programme for training gas specialists and small companies in the field of household gasification. The project has been implemented jointly by the Bulgarian Industrial Association and Gastec BG. 80 unemployed people with secondary or higher technical education took part in the project.

Bulgaria's National Electricity Transmission Company (NEC) has opened an international tender for export of 100 mW of electricity in 2005. The decision was taken after the company established the capacity for power production in the country and took into account local consumption and export contracts already signed. NEC usually exports about 45 million kWh of electricity a year. Bulgaria almost fully covers the electricity shortage in the Balkans, experts recall. 

Bulgaria’s Enemona JSC has implemented construction, repair and installation projects for over BGN 30 mln this year, the company’s CEO Mr. Dichko Prokopiev announced. Enemona is one of the leaders on the Bulgarian construction market. The company is specialized in reconstruction and modernization activities in the field of power engineering, as well as in the field of industrial and public construction. Over the past 5 years, revenues and profit have been steadily growing, and this year incomes are expected to mark a 7-per cent increase y/y.

Pobeda JSC, one of Bulgaria's biggest pastry and confectionery makers, expects to see its output grow by 20 per cent in November-December as compared to the like period a year ago, said the company's marketing director Ms. Daniela Nikolova. Ms. Nikolova attributed the rise to the improved quality of the produce. Pobeda produced over 2,000 tonnes of confectionery items in January-September, of which some 10 per cent were exported. The company controls 15 per cent of the domestic biscuits market, up by 2 per cent y/y.

Lukoil reported a net profit of BGN 8.9 million for the first three quarters of the year, a drop of 85.9 per cent compared to the corresponding period of 2003, according to the company's financial statement published on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange. Company's non-consolidated net profit came to BGN 7.22 million for the first nine months of the year. Net consolidated sales revenue dropped by 7.34 per cent year-on-year to BGN 260.5 million. 

Local open-end investment fund KD Pelican, owned by Slovenian investment company KD Group, has invested over 45 per cent of its assets in equities, the company's chief portfolio manager Mr. Vladislav Panev anounced. The Financial Supervision Commission confirmed on Wednesday the IPO prospectus of the investment company. The shares will be registered on the Bulgarian stock exchange by the year's end. 

Dobrich-based poultry producer Ptitzeklanitza JSC is planning to build a new production unit which will meet all EU standard, the company’s CEO Mr. Ivan Ivanov announced. The modern facility will cost EUR 5 mln. Currently, Bulgaria’s poultry export quota for EU is 7 000 t. Our country, however, is not able to use it in full, because no local poultry producer meets EU standards. The production in Ptitzeklanitza’s new unit is expected to be launched in the end of 2005.

Melrose Resources Plc, the oil company with interests in Bulgaria, Egypt and the US, was quoted by news outfit AFX as saying Wednesday it had entered into new corporate debt facilities amounting to USD 75 mln, with Standard Bank London Ltd as lead arranger. Melrose also said it refinanced and partly repaid the existing mezzanine finance relating to its Bulgarian Galata Gas Field development, provided by the AIG Emerging Europe Infrastructure Fund LP -- with a new USD 21 mln unsecured subordinated term loan provided by the same party.

Europe

Air France-KLM exceeded market expectations with a second-quarter net profit of EUR 201m (USD 264m) but cautioned that fuel prices would limit growth for the rest of the year. The group, created by the merger of the French and Dutch national carriers earlier this year, said: “the increasing pressure of the fuel bill for the second half of the year will slow down the improvement of the group’s financial performance. Nevertheless, thanks to cost savings and synergies, the group continues to target a higher operating income than last year.”

USA

General Electric Co. on Wednesday said it would buy Ionics Inc.for about $1.1 billion to build out its water treatment and services business. Terms of the deal call for GE to pay USD 44 per share cash for Ionics, a premium of nearly 50 percent over Ionics closing price Tuesday of USD 29.75 on the New York Stock Exchange. 

Asia

Sony Pictures has quietly set up a joint venture with state-controlled China Film Group that will make digital television programmes and feature films following the issue of rules by Beijing this month to allow foreign investment in local TV production companies. The venture in which Sony holds a 49 per cent stake and Hualong Film Digital, a wholly owned unit of China Film, owns the remainder, was launched without fanfare in July, Hualong Film general manager Huang Yaozu said on Wednesday. 

St. Clement Ohridski Feast

On November 25, the Bulgarian Orthodox church celebrates the day of St. Clement, archibishop Ohridski. Besides being an eminent archibishop, he was also a teacher and a writer, one of the most prominent students of the two brothers Cyril and Methodius. He founded the Ohrid Literary School. His writings were great, not only in volume, but also in significance. He is considered to be the author of around 75 cautionary and laudatory passionals, including the two extensive passionals of the brothers Cyril and Methodius. He is one of the initiators, as well as an active participant in the creation of the Cyrillic alphabet (as a more simple variant of the Glagolhic alphabet). His writings were extremely popular in all Slavonic countries. The first university in Bulgaria – Sofia University, which opened gates after Bulgaria’s liberation from the Ottoman yoke, was named after him.