In June, the statistics once again reported deflation, this time the prices of goods and services fell by 0.4%. This is happening for the fourth consecutive month - i.e. from the beginning of the state of emergency imposed in connection with the pandemic. But on an annual basis, inflation rose to 1.6%, up from 1.3% last month. The changes in prices in June are almost imperceptible. Compared to May, for example, food and non-alcoholic beverages, as well as clothing and footwear, fell by 0.9%. Transport has reduced its prices by 0.5%, most likely due to the continuing fall in fuel prices. There is a slight rise in prices for cigarettes and alcohol - by 0.2%, and for telecommunications services - by 0.3%. In the month preceding the introduction of 9% VAT for restaurants, prices in them rose by 0.8%. Statistics have also caught an increase in prices for cleaning and disinfecting products - by 3%. For the second month in a row, banking services became more expensive, this time by 0.9%. In the case of food, price movements are mainly related to seasonal factors.

The amount of the average insurance income for the country for May 2020 increases to BGN 1064.24, according to the National Social Security Institute. The indicator marks a slight increase, after the amount of the average insurance income for the country for the previous month was BGN 1057.09. The average monthly insurance income for the country for the period from June 1, 2019 to May 31, 2020 is BGN 1016.32. The determined average monthly insurance income for the country for the specified period serves in calculating the amounts of newly granted pensions in June 2020, according to the Social Insurance Code.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) based in the cross-border cooperation area of Bulgaria and Greece will receive over EUR 12.2 million of EU funding, to be used to finance their modernisation, the Bulgarian regional development ministry said on Thursday. The funds will be provided under the EU's cross-border cooperation programme INTERREG V-A Greece-Bulgaria 2014-2020, co-managed by the ministry, it said. The aim of the financing is to improve the competitiveness of the SMEs, provide them with an opportunity to modernise their production process as well as promote their growth through expansion towards new markets. On the Bulgarian side of the border, SMEs registed in the regions of Blagoevgrad, Smolyan, Kardzhali and Haskovo will benefit from the programme. The projects of a total of 36 companies have been approved for financing under the programme. Each project is worth between EUR 300,000 and EUR 600,000, with 65% of project costs to be provided in the form of a subsidy, while the remainder will be contributed by the company itself, the minsitry noted.

The executive directors of the ICGB project company from Bulgaria and Greece, Teodora Georgieva and Konstantinos Karayanakos, checked on the ground the progress on the construction activities of the gas connection between Greece and Bulgaria, the company announced. The two participated in a meeting with representatives of the construction company AVAX. The Greece-Bulgaria interconnector has a planned gas transmission capacity of 3 billion cubic meters per year with the option to reach 5 billion cubic meters. The total length of the route is 182 km, 150 km of which are on the territory of Bulgaria. Nearly 110 km of the terrain have already been cleared, the humus has been removed and the route has been prepared for further activities. "All teams are actively working on the IGB project and the main activities on its implementation are making significant progress despite the complications that have occurred due to the spread of the coronavirus," said CEOs Teodora Georgieva and Konstantinos Karayanakos.

Inspectors from the National Revenue Agency (NRA) are launching inspections at laboratories testing Covid-19. The reason is the numerous signals submitted by citizens in recent days for non-issuance of cash receipts when paying for the research, NRA announced. In recent days, queues have formed in front of the laboratories in the country due to the introduction of a mandatory negative PCR test as a condition for entry into Greece. The presence of a negative test for crossing the Promahon border crossing is in force since July 15 and must be done within 72 hours before the crossing. This forced Bulgarians with booked vacations in Greece to organize speed tests, which overloaded the laboratories. The National Revenue Agency said that "a series of open observations and control purchases are starting", which means that the tax authorities themselves will be tested. The NRA has informed the heads of the laboratories about the increase of the signals and their commitments to report the sales with fiscal vouchers, as well as about the sanctions provided in the legislation.

As of the end of June, Advance Terrafund REIT already owns 225,034 decares of agricultural land and 122 decares of urban land, the company announced. This package was formed after the deals for the purchase of 863 decares of plots at an average price of BGN 1055 / decare. In May, the price at which the largest public company, owner of agricultural land in the country, expanded its portfolio was BGN 1005. In addition, in June, 757 decares of agricultural land were finally sold at an average price of BGN 1405 / decare under two lease agreements from 2015. As Advance Terrafund REIT is not allowed to cultivate only these lands, the company rents out 163,487 decares for a period of one year to 427 agricultural producers and provides them with the opportunity to produce mainly cereals and oilseeds. In return, they pay rent, which is currently BGN 39.96 / decare, compared to BGN 38.20 a year earlier. The expected revenues for the economic year 2019-2020 are BGN 6,533,112, of which 47.4 percent have already been collected in advance.

Bulgaria's First Investment Bank (Fibank) said that its shareholders have approved the management's proposal to skip dividend distribution for 2019 and allocate its profit for the year to is general purpose reserve fund. The decision was adopted by the lender's shareholders meeting held on Wednesday. Fibank's standalone net profit fell to BGN 129.2 millionin 2019 from BGN 164.1 million in 2018, when it also skipped dividend distribution. Earlier this month, Fibank said it has raised BGN 195.4 million in a capital increase, through which state-owned Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB) is acquiring 18.35% interest in the company. The other major investor in the capital increase - Liechtenstein-registered Valea Foundation, is acquiring shares equal to a 7.87% stake in Fibank. The BDB is currently awaiting anti-trust approval so the capital increase can be completed.

The European Central Bank has left its monetary stimulus programs unchanged ahead of a key meeting of EU leaders on a recovery plan meant to help the economy bounce back from the coronavirus shutdowns. The ECB held off providing new measures Thursday after unleashing in recent weeks massive doses of monetary stimulus that have helped keep borrowing costs for companies and consumers at roughly pre-pandemic levels. At its last meeting June 4, the bank’s 25-member governing council increased its pandemic emergency bond purchase program by 600 billion euros to 1.35 trillion euros ($1.7 trillion), a step which pumps newly created money into the economy with the aim of keeping credit cheap and abundant for those who need it. One big goal for central banks such as the ECB and the U.S. Federal Reserve is to prevent the public health crisis from creating panic on financial markets that would constrict financing for companies at a time when many are struggling to stay in business due to restrictions on activity or reluctance by consumers to risk infection through face to face interaction.

California Resources Corp. filed for bankruptcy, kicking off what could turn into the next wave of collapses among oil drillers and the businesses that depend on them. The company joins more than 200 oil explorers that have filed for court protection since 2015, and more may be coming in a matter of weeks. Denbury Resources Inc. and Noble Corp. missed their July debt payments, and Chaparral Energy Inc. asked lenders for more time, setting them on course for a possible default. With oil prices hovering around $40 a barrel, the industry simply isn’t able to support debts taken on when prices were near peak levels. California’s biggest crude producer has been weighed down by massive borrowings since its spinoff from Occidental Petroleum Corp. in late 2014, right at the start of the previous downturn in the crude market. Low levels of cash and stricter state drilling regulations added to the pressure on California Resources, despite a $320 million investment from Tom Barrack Jr.’s Colony Capital Inc. last year. The company said it owed more than 50,000 creditors about $6.1 billion, according to a Chapter 11 petition filed in federal court in Houston.

China’s real estate investment grew faster in June than May helped by more robust construction activity and easier credit, as policymakers focused on getting the economy back on its feet after the coronavirus outbreak. The property market has gained momentum in recent months supported by policy stimulus and as travel curbs to halt the spread of the coronavirus were lifted in most regions. Some analysts expect the market to keep improving in the second half as infections fall, while others say a sustainable rebound may still be sometime away as consumer confidence remains soft and Beijing continues to crack down on speculation. Real estate investment in June rose 8.5% on year, compared with 8.1% growth in May, according to Reuters calculations based on National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data on Thursday. For January-to-June, property investment returned to growth for the first time this year, rising 1.9%, better than a 0.3% fall in the first five months. That comes as new construction starts measured by floor area increased 8.9% last month, compared with May’s 2.5% uptick.