Bulgaria's gross external debt at the end of November 2018 was EUR 33.78 billion (61.2 per cent of GDP), the Bulgarian National Bank reported. On an annual basis debt increased by EUR 601.8 million (1.8 per cent). At the end of November 2018, long-term liabilities amounted to EUR 25.43 billion (75.2 per cent of the country's gross debt), with long-term debt declining by EUR 142.3 million (0.6 per cent) on a yearly basis. Government debt at the end of November 2018 was EUR 5.62 billion (10.2 per cent of GDP) .The external liabilities of the sector fell by EUR 134.3 million (2.3 per cent) on an annual basis. 11 months of last year received external financing from non-residents amounted to EUR 4.91 billion (8.9 per cent of GDP). Of which EUR 319.3 million (6.5 per cent of the total) are for government management, EUR 1.07 billion (21.8 per cent) for the Banks sector, EUR 1.66 billions (33.8 per cent) for Other Sectors, and EUR 1.86 billion(37.9 per cent) for intercompany lending.

At the annual meeting of business with the government in Bulgaria EC Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis presented positive results of euro area membership to Bulgarian. Dombrovskis has pointed out that cooperation with Bulgarian authorities was very good and the country had good fiscal policy and macroeconomic indicators. However, Bulgaria is expected to improve overall governance in the financial sector, as well as to work for overcoming poverty and social exclusion. Commissioner Dombrovskis pointed out that the outcome of the stress tests in the banking system in July 2019 will be decisive for Bulgaria’s path to ERM II. According to the EU Commissioner, Eurozone membership is a guarantee for stability and a secure way to ensure a better business environment, which would help Bulgaria attract more foreign investors.

The Gorna Oryahovitsa-based company Zaharni Zavodi has invested BGN 11.19 million in a new installation for ethanol production. Thanks to the new equipment, the production capacity of the company will increase to 60,000 liters of ethanol per day at extremely low specific energy and other operating costs. The company hopes it will optimize production processes and open up new opportunities for company development on domestic and international markets. The company intends to continue the policy of investing in innovative technologies if there are market conditions for it and they bring substantial added value to customers. The main equipment provider is the Ukrainian company Techinservice Limited and the main contractor of the construction is Vito-95 Ltd., Stara Zagora. For the 12 months until the end of September 2018, Zaharni Zavodi has recorded sales of over BGN 83 million and profit before tax of BGN 1,366 million.

As of 1 February 2019, Euromaney Transfer Ltd is ceasing its activity as a payment institution, the Bulgarian National Bank press office announced. The license granted to the company to provide payment services under the Payment Services and Payment Systems Act (PSPSP) with the execution of available money transfers is canceled due to a received request for termination of the activity.

The World Bank Group will establish a second shared services centre in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, which will provide back office corporate and technology support to the group’s internal business operations. The centre is expected to launch operations by mid-2019, the World Bank Group said. The second centre in Sofia will complement an existing World Bank Group shared services center in India, which serves the organization with accounting, HR, IT and other services. Some 200 people are expected to be employed at the new centre.

Ministry of Education (MES) offered for IT business to enter schools as a measure for the modernization of education. A total of 17 National Education Development Programs are scheduled for 2019, with nearly BGN 76 million allocated from the state budget. Of these, four are entirely new. Among the new programs is also "IT companies in school and teachers in IT companies". It has a total budget of BGN 1 million and is part of the measures for strengthening the digital education in the Bulgarian school and the link with the labor market. A new point is that teachers will also have the opportunity to work in an IT company.

The Bulgarian Stock Exchange has delisted cellulose producer Svilosa from the BSE main market after the company was removed from the register of public companies and other issuers of securities. The Financial Supervision Commission said earlier on Tuesday that it has delisted the company from the register without providing further details. Earlier this month, A.R.U.S. Holding increased its stake in Svilosa by 3.38% to 96.64% through a buyout offer, priced at BGN 5.5 per share. As A.R.U.S. Holding's stake in Svilosa exceeded 95% following the bid. At the same time, minority shareholders have the right to force A.R.U.S. Holding to buy their shares at a price of BGN 5.5. Svilosa shares last traded on the BSE at a price of BGN 5.35 apiece, which translates to a market capitalisation of some BGN 170 million. In October last year, A.R.U.S. Holding, which held a stake of 80.67% of Svilosa at the time, signed an agreement with Luxembourg-based KBD SA for joint management of Svilosa, in accordance to which A.R.U.S. Holding's direct and indirect ownership of the Bulgarian cellulose producer increased to 93.26%. Svilosa, through its unit Svilocell, is the largest producer of bleached kraft pulp in Bulgaria.

Bulgarian cable maker Emka said that its net profit increased to BGN 4.2 million in 2018 from BGN 4 million the year before, following a rise in revenue. Total operating revenue grew to BGN 106.4 million last year from BGN 98.5 million in 2017. The company's operating expenses increased to BGN 102.2 million in 2018 from BGN 94.5 million a the year before, following a rise in expenses for materials. Emka is an affiliate of Bulgaria's Industrial Capital Holding.

British Prime Minister Theresa May will seek "legal changes" to the Brexit deal she agreed with EU leaders only last month to try to secure the support of MPs, her spokesman said Tuesday. She will hold talks with unnamed officials or leaders from the bloc throughout Tuesday, he said, as the clock ticks down to Britain's exit from the European Union on March 29. Brussels has repeatedly said it will not reopen the withdrawal agreement that May herself negotiated over nearly two years, but the spokesman said it was clear it would never be accepted by the British parliament. "We have to have a deal which can carry the support of parliament and that's going to require some changes to the withdrawal agreement," he said. The House of Commons, which rejected May's deal by a huge margin earlier this month, will from 1900 GMT Tuesday vote on a series of amendments designed to show the prime minister exactly what they want. May's spokesman said she backed an amendment that called for the removal of a controversial "backstop" arrangement in her deal to keep open the border with Ireland after Brexit, in favour of "alternative arrangements to avoid a hard border".

The United States has imposed sweeping sanctions on Venezuela's state-owned oil firm, in a move aimed at pressuring President Nicolas Maduro to cede power to the opposition in the crisis-hit South American country. The measures on Petroleos De Venezuela SA (PDVSA) are expected to block $7bn in assets and result in $11bn of lost export revenue over the next year, National Security Adviser John Bolton told reporters at the White House on Monday. The sanctions stop PDVSA from collecting the proceeds of oil exported to US customers, while also freezing assets of PDVSA's units, including Citgo, its US-based subsidiary. Washington's toughest financial punishment so far against Venezuela's government came in coordination with Juan Guaido, the self-proclaimed interim president who issued his own statement said he was taking "orderly control of our republic's assets abroad" to prevent a departing Maduro from trying "to empty the coffers". The announcements followed the decision by the US and several other countries last week to recognise Guaido, the leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, as Venezuela's acting leader instead of Maduro, who was reelected last May in a widely boycotted vote that many foreign governments refused to recognise.

Chinese authorities face an ever-growing list of challenges — be it an ongoing trade fight with the U.S. or headwinds in domestic demand — and it appears they don’t have many tools left to spur the economy amid a slowdown. The real estate market in China has traditionally played a major role in its economic development, household wealth and public sentiment. Real estate has been used by Beijing to stimulate growth during previous downturns, including one just three years ago. But along with a Chinese penchant for investing in houses, persistent expectations of government support sent prices and the household debt burden soaring. That’s created a delicate situation, one which analysts expect Beijing will not touch this time around, except to keep prices steady. Junheng Li, founder of China-focused equity research firm JL Warren Capital, estimates 61 percent of Chinese urban households live in homes less than 10 years old. She also notes there are many older units that are still in good condition. Some “simple math shows that continuously building new homes to stimulate investments and meanwhile create the false impression of wealth effect coming with home price appreciation is about to hit the wall,” she said in a January report.