Financial news

A basic training under the system of REFA-Germany on topic: "Optimization of corporate management of labor manufacturing process in a market economy" was successfully completed on January 21 (Friday) in Yambol. The test was successfully passed and REFA certificates were received by six experts from YAZAKI BULGARIA Ltd. Training consists of two main modules - "Organization of work systems and processes" and "Management of production data". The company is 100% owned by the Japanese company Yazaki Corporation, holding the largest share of international automotive market for the manufacture of cable equipment. The company's products include cable installations, air conditioners and other components and equipment for automobiles. REFA (Association for planning and organization of work in enterprises and corporate development - Germany) was established back in 1924 in Germany, its representative for Bulgaria is the Bulgarian Industrial Association and BIC Capital Market Ltd. The next REFA training course will be held in February in the town of Gotse Delchev.

Bulgarian textile industry reported annual growth of 3.3% in the third quarter of 2010, which interrupts the trend of continuous decline, shows the industry report of SFB Capital Market JSC on the development of the sector. In the first nine months production decreased by 7.2% as compared to the same period of previous year. In the third quarter of 2010 import is higher by 18.6% YoY and in the first nine months - by 4.6%. The trend of decrease in exports is broken. In the third quarter it increased by 14.3%. In the period January-September, however, it decreased by 1.8%. The trend of adverse changes in the structure of exports in the textile industry continues. Export of yarns increases and of fabrics - decreases. Sales of cotton fabrics for bed linen, for shirts and blouses, for apparel, carded fabrics, carded yarns and yarn of uncombed cotton were higher in the third quarter of 2010. For more information and orders see: http://sfb.bia-bg.com

	Mineral Fuels, Tailoring Products, Canning, Perfumery and Cosmetics, Furniture, Meat Products, Wine, Wood-processing Industry

Privatization

Bulgaria expects to finalise the privatisation of tobacco group Bulgartabac Holding and its remaining stakes in local electricity distribution companies by the end of the year, finance minister Simeon Djankov said. The assets, together with Vazovski Mashinostroitelni Zavodi (VMZ), building firms Montazhi and Promishleno Stroitelstvo Holding, the duty-free zones of Bourgas and Svilengrad and ten other companies in which the state owns stakes of over 50% are part of the privatisation agency's 2011 sell-off programme, Djankov said. The agency also plans to sell another 30 companies in which the country holds below 50% this year, he added, declining to say whether the units will go private through sales on the bourse in Sofia or via auctions.

Companies

The accused for the drain of the bankrupt Agrobusinessbank are innocent, decided the Supreme Court. The state will not get a penny as compensation for the granted unsecured loans as their repayment period of limitation has expired. According to an amendment of the law in 2001 unsecured loans are not a crime. The accused of taking more than denominated BGN 22 billion from Agrobusinessbank were the brokers Hristo Aleksandrov and Hristo Danov and three former members of the board - Ginko Alizotov, Peter Neychev and Denyu Kanazirski. On June 18, 2007 the Regional Court in Plovdiv acquitted Danov because the given by him 4 credits to companies of the military-industrial complex, including Metalcim Holding – Sopot, Opticoelectron - Panagyurishte and EOM - Sofia, were returned.

French oil services company Technip has been awarded a lump sum services contract for the phase 1 of a heavy residue hydrocracking complex to be built at their refinery located in the Bulgarian city of Burgas. The contract is worth approximately EUR 70 mln and has been awarded by Burgasnefteproekt (a Lukoil engineering subsidiary). The contract covers the detailed engineering and procurement services for a 2.5 million tons/year residue hydrocracker based on Axens H-Oil process, as well as amine, sour water stripper and hydrogen production units.

The Bulgarian arm of Lithuanian discount retailer Maxima Group said on Friday it will launch a new supermarket brand in Bulgaria. On January 25 Maxima Bulgaria is opening its first supermarket under the T-Market Express brand, the company said in a statement. The development of the new brand is part of the company's strategy, under which the number of T-Market and T-Market express stores in Bulgaria will reach 50 by the end of 2011, the statement added. The T-Market Express supermarkets will be located in the interior of residential neighbourhoods and will spread on between 100 and 250 square metres. The retailer's main competitors on the Bulgarian market include Piccadilly, owned by Serbian diversified group Delta Holding, and the local units of Germany's Metro Cash & Carry, HIT, Schwarz Group and REWE Group, Slovenia's Mercator and France's Carrefour as well as local players CBA and Fantastico.

Holding Roads has restructured its entire debt to First Investment Bank, the company said. The Holding, controlled by Vasil Bozhkov, was able to extend payment deadlines on loans and to negotiate lower interest rates on them. The company took a new loan of 4.37 million EUR from FIBank. These actions were taken by the management to optimize the operation of the company for implementation of ongoing projects and production program of the structure, the statement said. Company's shares closed Friday's stock trading at BGN 0.805 per share.

Hugo Boss is to launch production of ladies wear in Bulgaria. The good news for the Bulgarian textile industry came these days. So far the world fashion leader has been outsourcing only men’s clothes in Bulgaria. “For a month and a half the agents of Hugo Boss have been searching for vacant capacities and have concluded two contracts,” said Valeria Zhekova, chair of the Bulgarian Association of Textile Producers and Exporters. One of them is the Rousse-based Top Men for men-wear and the Pleven-based Dimitrov&Co for ladies-wear. Hugo Boss is not the only example of European fashion brands returning to Bulgaria. Since the middle of 2010, the Bulgarian ready-made clothes producers have been pleasantly surprised by a considerable growth in the demand for the autumn-winter collections. Most of the new offers were redirected from Asia to Bulgaria in the last moment.

Europe

Bailed-out Greece is doing better than anticipated in getting a handle on its debt problems but could still face another potentially damaging downgrade if the economy doesn't start growing again this year, a leading credit ratings agency said. Fitch Ratings managing director David Riley said the country has "far exceeded, admittedly low expectations" by implementing an "almost unprecedented" austerity program even at a time of continuing recession. He was also cautiously optimistic about Ireland's near-term future but nervous about the possibility of a return to recession in Portugal and over the state of the Spanish banking sector. Greece is on course to having reduced its budget deficit by a massive 6 percentage points of GDP last year to 9 percent at a time when the economy has contracted a further 4 percent. The country was bailed out to the tune of EUR 110 billion last May by its partners in the European Union and the International Monetary Fund as its borrowing costs in the markets surged to unsustainably-high levels, effectively preventing it from raising money in the bond markets.

America

The amount of U.S. debt subject to the country's legal maximum has topped $14 trillion for the first time. The amount of debt subject to the cap hit $14.001 trillion at the close of trade, according to the daily Treasury statement released on Thursday. That means the country is less than $300 billion away from the $14.294 trillion debt ceiling, which is a cap on how much the federal government can legally borrow. The debt ceiling has become a focal point of the debate over spending and debt. Even though congressional leaders say the cap will be raised, Republicans are vowing to use the issue as leverage to force spending cuts. The Treasury Department estimates that borrowing could reach the cap sometime between March 31 and May 16, according to a letter Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner sent to Congress earlier this month.

Asia

The Japanese government upgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in seven months in January, saying it shows signs of picking up as China's rapid growth and a recovery in the U.S. help support demand for Japanese exports. "Although the economy appears to be pausing, some movement toward a pickup can be seen," the Cabinet Office said in its monthly economic report for January, released Friday. "Exports are decreasing modestly, and industrial production shows signs that it has begun to stop decreasing," the report said, marking the first upgrade to the government's view of production since June 2009. The Cabinet Office also raised its view of prices, saying corporate goods prices are "mildly increasing" and, even though consumer prices continue to fall, their rate of decline is "moderating." Improving corporate profits and a better business investment climate were also cited as positive signs for the Japanese economy.

Petko Karavelov (24.III.1843 – 24.1.1903)

Petko Karavelov is one of the most prominent Bulgarian political and public figures of his time. He is the brother of the great Bulgarian writer and revolutionary Lyuben Karavelov. Throughout his life, he occupied many important posts in the state – he was prime minister, minister (of finance, justice, agriculture, trade and home affairs), chair of the National Assembly, deputy, regent. As a prime minister, he contributed greatly to the Union of Eastern Rumelia with the Bulgarian Principality and for the diplomatic acknowledgment of this act. He was repeatedly victim of political repression, and was forced to emigrate during the “full powers regime” (1881-1883) when the Tarnovo constitution was defied. He was a political prisoner and moral leader of the opposition during the Stambolov regime. He died on January 24 1903 and was buried in the yard of the Black mosque (nowadays the church St. Cyril and Methodius and Their Five Disciples), where he spent more than four years as a prisoner.

On that day:  Irakli