Financial news

The production of the enterprises from subsector Mineral Fuels continued to increase in 2009, shows the industry report of SFB Capital Market JSC on the development of the sector in Bulgaria. Compared to 2008 the growth is 0.5%. Import of mineral fuels for ICE increased by 19.2 percent compared to 2008. Export compared to 2008 slumped by 20.8%. The decrease in trade with fuels, oils and similar products is significant - by 38.8%. Negative foreign trade balance represents 38% of the foreign trade deficit of the country in 2009, up from 30% in 2008. At the domestic market were delivered 31.2 percent more fuel than in 2005. Delivered fuel for domestic consumption are 3% more from a year earlier. For more information and orders see: http://sfb.bia-bg.com

Two years after the opening of the first measures under the rural areas programme, Bulgaria faces failing to absorb a portion of the cash pot thanks to delays in processing of farming projects. Under the N+2 rule coming into force from the end of 2010, Bulgaria can absorb the financing allocated for a particular year two years later. Of the total EUR 581 million set aside for 2007 and 2008, Bulgaria has only absorbed EUR 379 million, Jean-Luc Demarty, the European Commission’s (EC) Director General for Agriculture and Rural Development, said in a letter to Bulgarian farm minister Miroslav Naydenov. The letter was sent in early March, or a month and a half after the revision of the programme’s implementation.

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

Privatization

Bulgaria’s state-run construction companies Technoexportstroy, Montagi and Promishleno Stroitelstvo will go private, said regional development minister Rosen Plevneliev. The government is currently considering selling off also Stroitelstvo I Vazstanovyavane and Avtomagistrali, according to Plevneliev. The companies will be sold by the Privatisation Agency, which will come up with the type of sale procedure. Technoexportstroy holds a stake in the project company that will develop the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline. It was also a shareholder in the failed concession of Trakiya highway. Plevneliev said Stroitelstvo I Vazstanovyavane has accumulated debts of BGN 84 million. Over the past two years, the company has shed assets, with two property tenders aborted since the beginning of 2010 thanks to the high appraisal.

Companies

Bulgaria’s Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works has amassed BGN 280 million in debts to private contractors, with just BGN 10 million allocated for payments this year. The approved 10% cost-saving in ministries and agencies would curb the debt to BGN 9 million. This means paying off the entire debt would take 28 years, minister Rosen Plevneliev estimated. He noted that the state-run Road Infrastructure Agency has run up BGN 458 million in overdue debts. The Bulgarian government recently approved a plan to pay off the debts through the Bulgarian Development Bank. 

Inspections that the State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission made at CEZ, E.ON and EVN, will continue at least three months, said Minister Traycho Traykov. This means that the watchdog will take the decision for the price change of electricity from 1 July, without ending its audit, from which depends the decision. The inspection of the energy companies, promised by Prime Minister Boyko Borisov because of doubts about the current inflated prices and unrealistic investment in the infrastructure, will be a factor. But according to Traykov, they are not sufficient to draw definitive conclusions. He said it was too early to determine whether the EUR 220 millions spent by the companies over last year for external services are legitimate.

Media group bTV officially has a new owner - Central European Media Enterprises (CME). News Corporation sold TV stations bTV, bTV Comedy, bTV Cinema to the owner of PRO BG and RING BG for USD 400 million and USD 13 million working capital. In 2007 the company acquired 80% of ProBG (then TV2) and RingBG for USD 172 million. The company, which is based in the Czech Republic is owned by billionaire Ronald Lauder, the cosmetics giant that controls Estee Lauder. The deal was officially announced in mid-February and was approved by the CPC in early April.

14 companies applied under OP Regional Development for the rehabilitation of second and third grade roads. Among them are many companies that participated in the auction for Trakia - Glavbolgarstroy, Trace, and several companies that are part of Holding Roads. Companies that will be selected for contractors will have to repair sections of Dabova Mahala-Brusartsi-Smirnenski, Knezha-Iskar and Dermantsi-Ugarchin-Mikre roads.

Russian Business group SINTEZ plans to built a 200-megawatt power plant in Bulgaria. According to the consortium's press office quoted by the electronic issue Big Power, the options for the power plant's construction have been discussed at a meeting of SINTEZ CEO Andrey Korolyov and Bulgaria's deputy minister of economy and energy Maya Hristova in Sofia. If constructed, this will be SINTEZ's second power plant on the Balkans after the one built in Skopje.

US manufacturer of avionics and other aerospace products Honeywell is opening a regional customer center in Bulgaria’s Sofia Airport Center, a project of Tishman International and GE Real Estate. Honeywell is a Fortune 100 company that invents and manufactures technologies to address challenges linked to global megatrends in the realms of safety, security, and energy. The Regional Customer Center is the location for the European project organization to execute Assembly, Integration, Logistic and Customer test services for their projects. Honeywell began conducting business in Bulgaria in 1983, operating through its joint venture company Sistematix, and after that through its subsidiary Honeywell SPLTD.

Europe

The UK inflation rate rose sharply to 3.4% in March from 3% the month before, official figures have shown. The rise in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation rate was greater than analysts had expected. Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation, which includes housing costs, also rose sharply to 4.4% in March from 3.7%. The CPI inflation rate is the measure targeted by Bank of England interest-rate setters, while RPI is often used as a benchmark in wage negotiations. Higher petrol prices were an important factor in rising consumer prices, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. Petrol prices have been rising because of the relative strength of the dollar and higher refining costs, as well as the increasing price of oil. The price of oil hit 18-month highs at the start of April.

America

Goldman Sachs Group Inc said first-quarter earnings nearly doubled, and Britain's financial regulator launched a formal probe related to civil fraud allegations against the Wall Street bank. Goldman's results came four days after the firm was accused of fraud by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the structuring and marketing of a debt product tied to subprime mortgages. "On the face of it, Goldman's numbers are pretty good, which they do time and time again," said David Morrison, market strategist for GFT Global Markets in London. "Investors will want to focus on the blow-out numbers, but the news the FSA is also probing the firm takes some of the shine off." Goldman said net income rose to $3.29 billion, or $5.59 per share, from $1.66 billion, or $3.39 per share, a year earlier.

Asia

Nissan said it will suspend some car production in Japan because cannot import parts from Ireland due to air traffic disruption brought by the eruption of an Icelandic volcano. Japan's third-largest automaker expects to lose total production of 2,000 vehicles a day in two plants from Wednesday due to a shortage of tyre pressure sensors that the company ships from Ireland, spokesman Mitsuru Yonekawa said. The parts are used in Nissan's Cube, Murano and Rogue vehicles targeting the North American market, he said, adding that it was undecided when the company will resume production. The part, which is obligatory in cars that run on US roads, raises an alarm if it senses abnormal air pressure, according to the company official. Production of other models that do not require the component, including the Note minicar, X-Trail SUV and Dualis hatchback, will also be affected by the suspension.

Silistra tomb

One of the most interesting ancient tombs ever found on the territory of Bulgaria has been uncovered not far from Silistra. It dates back to the 4th century - the time when Emperor Theodosius ruled, and is remarkable for its ornate decoration (geometrical, animal and human figures, hunting scenes, a family couple and their maid-servants) is influenced by the tradition of the Hellenistic age and is of exceptional artistic and historical value. The walls and the domes of the tomb are covered with paintings attracting scholars and lovers of the arts with their mysticism and perfection. From what is known, a Roman noble family, whose members lived during the 4th century AD were buried there. The polychrome walls each show scenes from the life of the family. In the north and south panels, male and female servants approach, carrying garments and toiletries.
In 1964 preservation efforts began on the tomb, allowing extensive reconstruction of its mural paintings.
The tomb has been declared one of the rare monuments of art dating from the Late Antiquity.

On that day:  Magura cave Sofia Puppet Theater