Parliament adopted at first reading the amendments to the Law on the Bulgarian National Bank governing the role of the ECB in the national framework for the supervision of banking financial institutions. The next step is a change in the Credit Institutions Act. The amendments are part of the procedure for the accession of Bulgaria to ERM II and the Banking Union. The adopted texts already include the BNB's obligations to comply with the ECB's guidelines and requirements, including imposing higher capital buffers or stricter measures to address systemic risks if requested by Frankfurt. It empowers the ECB to review the quality of Bulgarian banks' assets. After the stress tests of banks selected by the ECB (but at least the top 3 of the largest in Bulgaria) Frankfurt may decide to prescribe measures that need to be met if the results are not good.

Net assets worth BGN 13.4 billion were accumulated in the system of supplementary pension insurance to the end of September. This is a growth of nearly 10% compared to a year earlier, according to data from the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC). The amount covers the assets of the universal, professional and mutual funds. The number of insured persons in the third quarter in the four types of pension funds is 4,658,549, up by 2.32% compared to the same period in 2017. The total income of the pension insurance companies at the end of September 2018 is over BGN 133 million, however, 3.38% less than the 9th month of last year. The net financial result of the companies at the end of the third quarter amounted to BGN 46.3 million, which is slightly more than BGN 13 million up compared to the half-year.

A German company will unveil 700 new jobs in the Ruse region. This was made clear during a meeting of Deputy Economy Minister Alexander Manolev with the management of BADER GmbH & Co. KG, which was held at our Office for Trade and Economic Affairs in Berlin, the press office of the Ministry of Economy. BADER is in the top 3 in the world of automobile interiors, and their customers are leading automobile manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes, Audi and others. The company plans to set up a factory in Bulgaria for luxury car seat cover and stamping of items, aiming to start production in the second half of 2019. With full employment, the company will create between 700 and 800 jobs in the region. In recent years, there has been a tendency to expand existing and establish new industries in the sector that produce for leading automotive brands. Successful projects have been realized by investors from Germany, France, Belgium, Japan, Great Britain and many others, it became clear during the meeting. Deputy Minister Manolev undertook to assist them with all the necessary administrative support and invited the management of the company for the next meeting to take place in Bulgaria. BADER is one of the oldest and most prestigious automotive manufacturers in the world. They have more than 11,300 employees and productions on five continents.

The producer of furniture Parallel - Sevlievo, is starting another expansion and renovation, which this time is worth BGN 27 million. This is the third stage of the company's five-year construction and investment plan. The new site occupies 50,000 square meters, of which 26,500 will be closed production areas. The construction of a modern equipped hall, new buildings through which the production is expanded, a high-tech warehouse for optimization of production, a second, fully automated warehouse, the type of Radio Shuttle are included in the plan. The newest investment of Parallel also includes the construction of a modern administrative and residential building. Part of the funds is envisaged for the introduction of high-tech machines and equipment. The funds for the project are also provided by own means and a credit. The planned completion of the construction works is May 2020. The new extension is expected to allow more than 200 new jobs to be opened and to double the volume of produced output. The industrial building company Castello Precast is again a contractor of the construction and assembly activities. Parallel is among the largest companies in the furniture industry, producing soft upholstered furniture and home furnishings. In 2017, the company reported revenues of BGN 65.483 million (compared to BGN 60.208 million in 2016) and a profit of BGN 5.671 million.

Bulgarian public gas supplier Bulgargaz plans to propose a 4.98% increase in the wholesale price of natural gas, to be valid in the first quarter of 2019. According to the draft proposal, the price will rise by BGN 2.15 to BGN 45.44 per MWh, excluding VAT and excise duty. Bulgargaz will submit its final proposal for approval by the energy regulator on December 11. Bulgarian energy regulations require Bulgargaz to set the gas price quarterly, taking into account global oil prices and the lev/dollar exchange rate. The Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) has the final say on proposed changes in the wholesale price, at which the state-owned company sells natural gas to end-suppliers and customers directly connected to its transmission network. Bulgaria imports almost all the natural gas it needs from Russia via a pipeline crossing Ukraine, Moldova and Romania.

Bulgarian investment intermediary Zagora Finacorp is planning to offer its services on 10 foreign markets in Europe, the Financial Supervision Commission said. Zagora Finacorp intends to offers its services, through an agent - Saga Global Fincorp, in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Italy, France, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, the financial regulator said in a statement. FSC sent a letter to Zagora Fincorp, asking the brokerage to provide additional documents related to its intentions.

Bulgaria's Life Insurance Institute is planning to offer its services in Romania, according to a statement by Bulgaria's Financial Supervision Commission (FSC). The financial regulator asked Life Insurance Institute to provide further information and documents in relation to its plans, the FSC said in a statement. The regulator did not provide further details in its statement.

Telenor Bulgaria, part of Czech Republic-based investment group PPF, has generated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of BGN 76 million in the third quarter of the year. This compares to EBITDA of BGN 67 million in the comparable period of last year, and BGN 68 million in the second quarter of this year, according to figures published previously by Telenor Bulgaria. Telenor Bulgaria booked revenue of BGN 187 million in July-September, on the back of an increase in average revenue per user (ARPU). In the third quarter of last year, Telenor Bulgaria posted revenue of BGN 175 million. In the second quarter of this year, the company's revenue also totalled BGN 175 million. Telenor Bulgaria had some 3.16 million customers at the end of September. In July, PPF completed the acquisition of Norwegian mobile operator Telenor's telecommunications assets in Bulgaria, Montenegro, Serbia and Hungary for EUR 2.8 billion. On the Bulgarian mobile segment, Telenor competes with A1 Bulgaria, the local unit of A1 Telekom Austria group, Bulgarian telecommunications group BTC, which operates under the brand name Vivacom, and Max Telecom.

Lovers of Desperados tequila-flavored beer and Strongbow apple cider can rest a little easier in the stressful run-up to Brexit. Dutch brewer Heineken NV is stockpiling extra booze. The drinks maker is working with U.K. logistics company Wincanton Plc to find additional storage space ahead of March 29, when Britain is set to leave the European Union. It has already started storing more volumes, and plans to build them up over the coming weeks and months, according to Wincanton Chief Executive Officer Adrian Colman. Heineken is looking to stockpile thousands of pallets worth of goods, he said Thursday. The move highlights growing corporate anxiety as the Brexit deadline looms. While Prime Minister Theresa May has begun briefing her cabinet on the text of a near-complete Brexit deal, the terms for the cross-border trade of goods and services haven’t been finalized. Fears are mounting among a broad range of manufacturers that new barriers will disrupt supply chains. Heineken, as well as other alcoholic beverage companies that Wincanton declined to name, “want to build some stock ahead of the March deadline,” Colman said in an interview. “New systems and processes, whatever the change -- even if very minimal-- won’t be achieved overnight.”

Polish state-run gas firm PGNiG has signed a long-term deal with Cheniere Marketing International to secure liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies from the United States, it said on Thursday, as Poland seeks to cut dependence on Russian fuel. Poland consumes around 17 billion cubic metres of gas annually, more than half of which comes from Russia’s Gazprom under a long-term deal that expires in 2022. PGNiG has previously said it does not intend to extend the agreement, and has taken steps to secure supplies elsewhere after that date. Under the terms of the new deal PGNiG will receive a total of 0.52 million tonnes of LNG in the period 2019-2022 and 29 million tonnes in 2023-2042, to be delivered to an LNG terminal in the Baltic Sea, the company said. After regasification, this corresponds to 0.7 bcm of gas by 2022 and 39 bcm in 2023-2042. Starting from 2023 PGNiG will be receiving 1.45 mln tonnes of LNG, or 1.95 bcm of gas, annually under the deal.

In the span of just 11 months, China went from having no distressed dollar-denominated corporate bonds to having more than any other emerging market. The world’s second-biggest economy has 15 bonds whose option-adjusted spreads over U.S. Treasuries were above 1,000 basis points as of Nov. 6, according to a Bloomberg Barclays index. That’s more than all the other nations on the gauge, combined. An ongoing trade war and slower economic growth after years of breakneck expansion are straining the nation’s highly-leveraged corporate sector. Property developers in particular are facing surging borrowing costs as refinancing pressures intensify amid the government’s effort to rein in real estate prices. China’s debt, both distressed and otherwise, account for a quarter of all securities included in the gauge, which tracks about 660 dollar notes with a par value of at least $500 million. The Asian nation is home to the developing world’s biggest bond market.