The concluding statement of the regular mission of the International Monetary Fund to Bulgaria, 25 January – 1 February, reads: “Bulgaria delivered a robust economic performance in 2018. Output is estimated to have grown by 3.2 percent in 2018, unemployment to have fallen to close to 5 percent, and the current account to have recorded another sizable surplus. Prospects for 2019 are for more of the same––we are projecting real GDP growth of 3.3 percent. However, the downside risks to this outlook have recently risen, owing to a sharper-than-anticipated slowdown in global trade and unsettled financial markets. Translating this positive momentum into faster per capita income convergence toward the advanced EU partners continues to be the key policy challenge. Deeper integration into the EU through the newly agreed ERM II preparation process will be helpful in this regard,” the concluding statement reads.

Income inequality in the EU continues to be substantial. Bulgaria remains the country with the lowest gross minimum wage - EUR 286 (BGN 560), according to Eurostat data for January 2019. The highest minimum wage in the EU is received by the inhabitants of Luxembourg - EUR 2071. In 22 out of the 28 EU Member States there are national minimum wages, with the difference between the lowest and the highest being nearly 7 times. Bulgaria has traditionally ranked last, although in 2019 the lowest wage was increased from BGN 510 to BGN 560. Minimum wages do not apply to Denmark, Italy, Cyprus, Austria, Finland and Sweden. Measured through Purchasing Power Parity, differences are declining as the price level of poorer countries is lower. Thus, the difference between the lowest wage (in Bulgaria) and the highest (in Luxembourg) shrinks to 3 times. According to Eurostat data in nine Member States, minimum wages vary between EUR 400 and EUR 600 per month. They are all in the eastern part of the EU - Latvia (EUR 430), Romania (EUR 446), Hungary (EUR 464), Croatia (EUR 506), Czech Republic (EUR 519), Slovakia (EUR 520) , Estonia (EUR 540) and Lithuania (EUR 555).

Bulgaria's Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) is launching an in-depth probe into arms maker Emko's planned acquisition of local peer Dunarit, in line with a recent ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC). In January, the SAC cancelled a decicion by the competition regulator dating back to 2016 to let the deal move ahead without analysing it. Back in 2016, when Emko notified the competition regulator of the planned acquisition, CPC decided that it would not look into the deal because the combined turnover of the two companies was below the regulatory limit. The anti-trust body's decision was challenged in court by local company Viafot Investment Bulgaria, which operates in the same market segment as the parties to the deal. The regulator has failed to consider the turnover of Dunarit's parent company - Kemira, as well as two of Dunarit's units - Sana Park Resort Management and Machineinvest-consulting, which will also be acquired by Emko in accordance with the announced terms of the transaction, the court ruled in January. According to the court ruling, the regulator has also incorrectly calculated the domestic turnover of the two companies.

Bulgaria's Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) has imposed a BGN 15 million fine on retailer Metro Cash and Carry Bulgaria over illegal comparative advertising. Metro Cash and Carry is obliged to halt the advertising campaign and announce the regulator's decision in two national dailies. The probe was launched following a complaint submitted by local competitor Lidl Bulgaria. Metro Cash and Carry's campaign discredits and tarnishes the reputation of Lidl Bulgaria, and gives the company a possibility to benefit from Lidl's popularity and its practice to hold "thematic weeks". The fine is equal to 2% of Metro Cash and Carry Bulgaria's annual turnover in 2017. Metro Cash and Carry Bulgaria is a wholly-owned unit of Dutch-registered Metro Cash and Carry International Holding, and is part of German retail group Metro Cash and Carry. Metro Cash and Carry Bulgaria operates 11 stored across nine of the country's major cities. Lidl, a global discount supermarket chain which is part of Germany's Schwarz-Gruppe, entered the Bulgarian market in 2010. Lidl Bulgaria operates stores in 46 cities.

First Investment Bank reported total write-offs worth BGN 267 mln in 2018, which is why the bank's equity decreased by BGN 50 mln to BGN 879 million as of 31 December 2018, shows the company's report. The bank reported a profit of BGN 156.6 million, its shares rising by 13% to BGN 3.85 per share on January 31, 2019. But a detailed reading of the report shows that there are write-offs for BGN 184.4 million from "Effect from initial application of IFRS 9" which are reflected directly in a decrease in the reserves in Equity and not in the Income Statement. Apart from these, there are also write-offs for BGN 82.5 million, which are reflected in the Income Statement, with the total depreciation amounting to BGN 267 million. There are also re-depreciated impairments for BGN 59.6 million. The result is a decrease in equity of BGN 50 million despite the strong profit.

The Bulgarian authorities plan to start selecting a strategic investor for the construction of the Belene nuclear power plant before the end of February, Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova said. "At present, our experts are drafting an invitation for the first stage of choosing a strategic investor. This invitation will be published in an official publication of the EU and in two Bulgarian newspapers. I hope the selection will start before the end of February. It will be as public and transparent as possible and will give an opportunity to all interested parties to take part in it. If the procedure is successful, it will mean that the project is economically viable, and the construction of the plant will give guarantees of energy security not only for Bulgaria, but for the entire region," she said. Bulgaria wants to build the Belene nuclear power plant for EUR 9 billion over 8 years. Strategic investors were given several mandatory conditions, in particular, to maximize the use of the equipment, which was already delivered to Bulgaria and to continue working in accordance with the previously approved project. However, the maximum cost of the plant’s construction is EUR 10 billion, and the terms of its commissioning should not exceed 10 years. The main requirements that should be met to continue the construction include building the plant under market conditions, without state guarantees and without guarantees of the acquisition of electricity produced by the NPP.

A Bulgarian company has created a pocket cash register, which is pocketsize and is independent from power supply and has a printer. They believe the Daisy Compact S is the world's smallest cash register with a size of 84x167x60 mm and a weight of 300 grams. The device enjoys a great interest on the market in Bulgaria due to the replacement of the cash registers until March 31, 2019 after the requirements of the Ministry of Finance for each receipt to be sent to the NRA. Each fiscal receipt contains a unique QR code allowing it to be verified by the client with a mobile application. Under the new rules, service bills are forbidden, and vendors using sales management software must link all fiscal devices and printers that are located with it. The Daisy Compact S meets these conditions in addition to its functionality, innovation and its many functionalities, including a large illuminated operator display, customer display, keyboard backlight, a linear thermal printer, and a built-in battery that makes it independent of power outlets. The device also has Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity and is the right choice for retail, courier, office, retail, bar and club. It can load item data and customers, making it a true "pocket office,".

The steel producer Korado-Bulgaria has increased its net profit by 10% last year. The company's turnover has increased by 3%, outpacing the growth of costs, preliminary data from the report show. Last year, a total of 467,497 radiators were produced in the plant, or 1.5% more than 2017. Customers are mainly from the European market, with a major share of sales to the Czech Korado group, which is the majority owner of the company, with 82.56% of shares. Net sales revenue increased to BGN 44 million. Expenditure also increased, but slower (by about BGN 800 thousand). This is why the company reported net profit growth of up to BGN 5.3 million compared to BGN 4.8 million in 2017. Last year the company began to pay six-month interim dividends. For the first time, shareholders agreed to distribute part of the half-year profit in October. Out of a total of BGN 3.2 million, as dividends were allocated BGN 1.3 million or BGN 0.10 per share.

Italy’s economy fell into recession in the final three months of 2018, in a blow to the country’s governing radical centre-right coalition, which pledged to boost the country’s persistently low GDP growth. The 0.2% drop in the eurozone’s third largest economy between October and December followed a 0.1% fall in the previous three months, the Italian statistics agency said. Declining GDP growth over two consecutive quarters put Italy in recession. It is the third time the country has fallen into recession in a decade. Amid weakening growth rates across the eurozone, which led to the 19-member currency bloc increasing its GDP by only 0.2% in the final three months of 2018, Italy is likely to be forced to rewrite its forecasts for growth in 2019. James Athey of Aberdeen Standard Investments said: “The growth forecasts on which the budget was based have already been blown out of the water and eurozone growth continues to weaken. Italy is going to have to face up to some real problems.” Italy’s economy has been shrinking steadily since the rightwing League party formed a coalition with the anti-establishment Five Star Movement.

President Trump intends to pick senior Treasury Department official David Malpass as the U.S. nominee to lead the World Bank, The Trump administration has notified the development lender's shareholders. The nomination of Malpass would put a Trump loyalist and a skeptic of multilateral institutions in line to lead the world's largest development lender. Politico, which first reported the decision, said it would be announced on Wednesday, citing unidentified administration officials. A White House spokeswoman declined comment, and a spokesman for the U.S. Treasury did not respond to queries about the decision. A senior administration official said that Trump "really liked" Malpass' experience. "David has been covering the World Bank and inserting himself in World Bank matters for decades. The president likes Malpass, he served in his campaign and transition," the official said. "He shares the president's views. Malpass knows the World Bank senior staff and a lot of the senior staff support him."

Nissan has confirmed that the new X-Trail originally planned for its Sunderland plant will instead be made in Japan. In a letter to workers, it said continued Brexit uncertainty is not helping firms to "plan for the future". In 2016, the carmaker said it would build the new model in the UK after "assurances" from the government. Unions described the news as "disappointing" and said they were "seriously concerned". The government said Nissan's decision was "a blow to the sector" but that no jobs would go as a result. Nissan has made cars at Sunderland since 1986 and employs almost 7,000 people. Commenting on its decision, Nissan also said that since 2016 "the environment for the car industry in Europe has changed dramatically", including "changing emissions regulations". In the UK, diesel cars that fail to meet the latest emissions standards now face a levy and a number of European countries, including the UK, have announced bans on both new diesel and petrol vehicles in the future.