Financial news

People working in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia earn on average double the remuneration paid to their counterparts in the towns of Vidin and Blagoevgrad. This is shown by the figures of the NSI for the third quarter of the year. During this period, the average wage was the highest in Sofia, where it stood at BGN 1193. The lowest average wage was registered in Vidin – BGN 593, while the second lowest was recorded in Blagoevgrad – BGN 606. Sofia is the only region in Bulgaria in which the average wage was above the average figure for the country, with the difference being 36.5 %. Surprisingly, the second highest average wage was registered in one of the poorest regions of the country – Vratsa. The average wage in Vratsa stood at BGN 871, which was largely due to the high remunerations paid at the only nuclear power plant in the country, which is located near the town of Kozloduy. In the regions of Stara Zagora, Sofia province and Varna, workers earned on average more than BGN 800. Compared to the same quarter of last year, the largest wage increase was registered in the city of Pernik – 11.7 %, while the rise in Sofia amounted to 11.5 %. The opposite trend was recorded in the regions of Smolyan, Kardzhali and Silistra, where wages decreased compared to last year.

The total amount of funds transferred from one pension fund to another is BGN 287.74 million, according to data for the first nine months of 2015. Of this amount, BGN 253.081 million went into universal funds, BGN 31.351 million in professional and BGN 3.308 million in voluntary funds. The share of transferred money to the average net assets of the universal pension funds is 3.64 percent, of the professional - 4.03 percent, and of voluntary pension funds - 0.43 percent. In the third quarter of 2015, the pension insurance companies filed a total of 47,910 applications for switching participation and transfer of funds from one pension fund to another. Total of 41,776 insured persons have transferred their funds for supplementary pension insurance. Compared with the second quarter of 2015, when the number of persons with altered participation is 45,060, decrease is by 3284 people or by 7.29 per cent.

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Privatization

Bulgaria's Privatisation and Post-privatisation Control Agency will launch a remote public auction for the sale of 100% of the capital of tour operator Rusalka. The 8,495 shares that will be auctioned have a combined starting price of BGN 322,810, the privatisation agency said. The auction which will be conducted on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange, starting on December 12 and closing on December 29.

Companies

Bulgarian Deputy Minister of Economy Daniela Vezieva will present four certificates for investment class issued under the Investment Promotion Act for the time period August-November 2015, the press office of the Ministry of Economy announced. Two of the certificates are for the construction of a factory and a logistics centre of ARKOMAT BULGARIA EOOD and STAR ABC INVEST EOOD and are for Class A. In Class B the certificates will go to ESCO TRADE EOOD for the construction of a logistics centre and to KLAYMMAT OOD for production base. The ceremony on certificates presentation will take place at the head office of the Ministry of Economy.

A Bulgarian-American company plans new investments in Varna in 2016, which will lead to opening of over 40 new jobs and the recruitment of specialists in the field of IT and SEO. The company 411 Marketing is part of the group 411 Locals. The company was founded by a Bulgarian entrepreneur in 2007 in Las Vegas. The office opened in 2009. Initially it started with a staff of four people. Now its office in Varna has a team of over 140 professionals. The sea capital of Bulgaria is preferred to other destinations after precise analysis. Key advantages are the appropriate time zone, a large number of educated students, good IT infrastructure and high-speed fiber optic lines. 100% of 411 Marketing's IT products are produced for export overseas – USA, Canada, Western Europe. The company specializes in web development, search engine optimization, online advertising, marketing videos. 411 Locals is an official partner to Google. In the US the company won the highest possible rating for business-quality products and services BBB A +.

Bulgarian-based IT company Bulpros acquired a majority stake in local IT consulting firm InteQrity in a bid to expand its technological competence. With the acquisition of a majority share in InteQrity, Bulpros is expanding its technology portfolio with competence in Oracle-related software products. "Last year, InteQrity proved to be a reliable partner for many international companies as well as one of the valued gold Oracle partners in Bulgaria. This fits well into the strategic development of Bulpros," Bulpros CEO Ivaylo Slavov said. Information on the value of the deal and the exact size of the transacted stake was not disclosed. "Our partnership with Bulpros is an important strategic decision for us as well. Our main goal is to become a major player in the area of enterprise integration on the Bulgarian and foreign markets," InteQrity CEO Radoslav Bratanov said. Bulpros is a global IT services and solutions company with focus on software development, cloud services and technology consulting. InteQrity offers services in the area of enterprise integration and architecture. The company also provides IT services and solutions to leading companies in telecommunications, finance, insurance and other industries.

Nine banks have confirmed interest in lending up to EUR 650 BGN to the state-owned BEH. The energy group is seeking the money to enable its indebted subsidiary National Electricity Company (NEK) to repay debt owed to the local units of U.S.-based AES Corp. and ContourGlobal. The two coal-fired power plants, AES Galabovo and ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3, owe BGN 325 M to lignite coal mines in Maritza East basin. The plants’ owners have agreed to cut the price at which they sell their electricity to NEK once they get repaid by the company. The Bulgarian authorities are currently preparing a timetable for negotiations with the interested lenders. Confidentiality agreements have been signed with the nine banks and negotiations with each of them over loan terms are about to begin. The lenders were not expected to seek Bulgarian government guarantees for the debt.

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Europe

The European Commission has announced it is prepared to dilute its requirements on foreign investment for European airlines — which cap non-European ownership of EU airlines at 49 per cent — through deals with individual countries. But the rules will only be loosened for states that agree to abide by stricter regulations on state subsidies, which have become a bone of contention between some EU legacy airlines and carriers based in the Middle East. The changes come as the EU attempts to boost the competitiveness of the European aviation industry, which has been hit by the rise of lower-cost rivals such as the Gulf airlines and the emergence of rival airport hubs in Asia and Dubai. Over the past decade, Etihad, Emirates and Qatar Airways have grown from relatively small players to global challengers on many routes. Violeta Bulc, the commissioner responsible for the EU’s transport policy, called the shift “economic diplomacy”, but she refused to say whether Gulf carriers benefited from “unfair” subsidies from their home states.

America

Electrolux's $3.3 billion deal to buy General Electric's (GE) appliance business fell through, torpedoing the Swedish firm's plan to bolster its U.S. business and sending its shares down as much as 15 percent. Electrolux said it would focus instead on developing existing brands such as Frigidaire, Kenmore and Tappan and could look at other acquisitions. But analysts said neither would offer such a quick way to close the gap on bigger rival Whirlpool, with some suggesting CEO Keith McLaughlin might now decide to leave. "I'm not sure how much he will enjoy staying on now that what might have been his last deal won't go through," Handelsbanken Capital Markets' Karri Rinta said. "One would definitely have preferred for this deal to go through. Now it is somewhat back to square one." With his family having returned to the United States several years ago, speculation has been rife McLoughlin, who has been CEO for almost five years and imported manufacturing practices from the auto industry to boost profitability, could soon leave.

Asia

Fifty individual shareholders of Toshiba Corp sued the Japanese conglomerate in Tokyo, seeking 301.99 million yen ($2.45 million) in damages after the firm's stock plunged in the wake of a multi-billion dollar accounting scandal. The lawsuit against the company, as well as three former chief executives and two chief financial officers, comes as Toshiba shares hover about 40 percent lower than their value before the company questioned its accounting in early April. Toshiba later said it inflated profits by around 155 billion yen over about seven years. A third-party probe blamed aggressive earnings goals and a corporate culture that discouraged employees from questioning superiors. "Toshiba falsified its financial statements and misled investors," the plaintiff group said in a complaint filed with the Tokyo District Court. "Toshiba's fraud has done immeasurable damage to the trust in a stock company system."

December 8 – Bulgarian Students’ Holiday

On December 8, all students in Bulgaria celebrate their holiday. The beginning of this holiday is closely related to the first, and until 1920 – the only school of higher education in Bulgaria – the Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski. Par. 25 of the general rules of the university published in 1905 reads: “On November 25 (December 8), Day of St. Kliment Ohridski and holiday of the University, the new Rector is officially introduced. The former Rector reads a report on the university’s development, and the new Rector delivers an academic speech.” This was the official start of December 8 as Bulgarian students’ holiday. The celebration of the day was canceled in 1944, and moved to November 17, when the International Day of Student Solidarity is. In 1962, December 8 was restored as holiday of the University.

On that day:  The church St. Petka Samardjiiska – Sofia