Bulgaria's exports to third countries - meaning, non-EU countries, were 12.5 per cent lower in 2018 than they had been in 2017, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said. In 2018, exports from Bulgaria to third countries added up to BGN 17.5 billion. Among non-EU countries, Bulgaria's main trading partners in 2018 were Turkey, China, Serbia, the United States, the Republic of Macedonia and the Russian Federation which accounted for 52.6 per cent of the exports to non-EU countries. In December 2018, exports of goods from Bulgaria to third countries decreased by 14.6 per cent compared to the corresponding month of the previous year and amounted to BGN 1.49 billion, NSI said. In 2018 the total value of all the goods exported from Bulgaria - to EU and non-EU countries - amounted to BGN 55.28 billion which was 1.2 per cent more than the previous year.

Many international research centers and global institutions have already made their winter economic forecasts. The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission recently published their forecasts as well. These forecasts were made in times of changing economic cycle and the differences between the analysts mainly boil down to the depth and the speed of the expected slowdown of the economic growth in Europe and Bulgaria. All analysts and observers contend that in 2019 the Bulgarian economy will continue to grow, yet at a slightly lower gear. Economic experts are unanimous that the growth of the gross domestic product will reach 3.1%-3.7% which is a good performance against the backdrop of the economic development in the Eurozone, where, according to forecasts the GDP growth will be under 2%. Even the regular consumers in Bulgaria share this opinion. Bulgaria desperately needs higher incomes and consumption, because the latest economic data show that this country is last in Europe in terms of the GDP growth per capita ratio- only EUR 7,300, whereas the average GDP growth per capita in the EU is EUR 15,000.

The Bulgarian company Inercom is no longer considered by CEZ as an exclusive candidate in the deal for the Bulgarian assets of the company and is also negotiating with the Indian "India Power Corp." This is stated on the site of the Czech newspaper Lidove News, quoting sources from CEZ. Due to the situation in Bulgaria, the sale of the business in the country, hampered by regulatory problems and the failure of the Bulgarian candidate to raise the necessary funds, CEZ returned to work with the second candidate, initially offering EUR 355 million for five years. Inercom's bid was 342.4 million, but instantly. However, sources from CEZ's headquarters say the Indian Power Corporation is trying to take advantage of the unfavorable developments surrounding the Inercom deal and change its bid.

Three subsidiaries of Bulgaria's Ecomtech, which operate the e-commerce platforms mymall in Bulgaria and woomie in Romania and Greece, have all filed for the launch of insolvency proceedings, commercial register data shows. The combined debt of the three companies - Marketnet, Netcomert and Aristo Trade, by the time of their respective filings in January and February amounted to BGN 9.3 million. Of the total, the three companies owe BGN 2.9 million among themselves or to their owner Ecomtech. The three companies owe a total of BGN 2.3 million to Bulgaria's National Revenue Agency. Netcomert, which operates the woomie.ro platform in Romania, owes BGN 2.2 million to the country's tax authorities, while Aristo Trade, which operates woomie.gr in Greece, owes BGN 1.6 million to the Greek authorities. Among the three companies' other notable creditors are Google Ireland Ltd. which is owed BGN 106,155 and Bulgarian express delivery company Rapido Express and Logistics, to which the companies owe BGN 50,871. Ecomtech owns 100% interest in both Marketnet and Netcomert, as well as 75% in Aristo Trade.

Bulgarian real estate developer Winslow Group said that it has issued a five-year BGN 8 million unsecured bond, due in 2024. The issue carries an annual coupon of 5.3% with interest payments due once per year, Winslow Group said in a filing to the commercial register. The non-convertible issue consists of 8,000 bonds with a nominal value of BGN 1,000 each. The bond's principal will be repaid all at once - in January 2024. At the end of 2017, Winslow Group was owned by two local private investors - Yanik Mekushin and Ivan Mekushin, with stakes of 66.67% and 33.33%, respectively.

Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company Bulgaria intends to reduce its capital to BGN 1.08 million from BGN 18.42 million. The company will carry out a reverse stock split, merging 17 existing shares of BGN 1 in par value each into 1 new share of nominal value of BGN 17. In order to complete the reverse stock split, the company will first increase its capital by BGN 4, so the existing number of shares becomes an exact multiple of 17. Then, the 18,419,398 existing shares will be merged into 1,083,494 new shares. Subsequently, the company will reduce the nominal value of the new shares from BGN 17 to BGN 1, effectively decreasing its capital to BGN 1.08 million from BGN 18.42 million. The decision was unanimously approved by the company's shareholders at an extraordinary meeting held on January 25. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company Bulgaria is part of Swiss-based holding Coca-Cola HBC AG. Coca-Cola HBC is a leading bottler of the Coca-Cola company. In Southeast Europe, the company operates in Croatia, Slovenia, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo, and Montenegro.

Alternativa Financial EOOD has filed documents with the BNB to obtain an electronic payment license. In addition to the European Central Bank and national banks, electronic payment companies are the only ones who can issue and buy back electronic money. The minimum required capital for them is BGN 700 thousand and the fee for the license issued by the BNB is BGN 10 thousand. So far only two companies have been licensed to carry out this activity. The law provides for companies to work with representatives who are also kept in the register, bringing their business to a wider audience. Alternativa Financial candidate is already licensed for a non-banking financial institution issued by the BNB, as well as a license from the Ministry of Finance, which entitles the company to take out client funds and to trade investment gold and other precious metals.

Britain and Switzerland will sign an agreement on Monday to continue trading on preferential terms after Brexit, the British trade department said, protecting a trade relationship worth 32 billion pounds. The formal signing of the deal, on which agreement had previously been announced, is one of only handful of concrete steps Britain has made towards ensuring that all the trade deals it currently benefits from as an EU member will continue after it leaves the bloc next month. “Not only will this help to support jobs throughout the UK but it will also be a solid foundation for us to build an even stronger trading relationship with Switzerland as we leave the EU,” International Trade minister Liam Fox said in a statement. The deal reflects Switzerland’s “mind the gap” strategy of ensuring seamless trade ties with Britain, regardless of whether London is able to strike and approve a formal exit agreement with Brussels by March 29, the date it is scheduled to leave.

With just seven weeks to go before Brexit, it’s not just U.K. politicians who are bitterly divided over the country’s withdrawal from the European Union -- large banks are also at loggerheads. British lenders and their Wall Street rivals are pushing widely different views on Brexit, a clash that was highlighted at a meeting last week with U.K. government officials, people with knowledge of the situation said. While U.S. banks want Britain to maintain the closest possible ties with the EU after Brexit, U.K. banks and insurers are anxious they don’t become beholden to new laws made by Brussels, two of the people said. Representatives from eight finance and insurance trade groups met on Tuesday with the Economic Secretary to the Treasury John Glen, who is working on the government’s “global financial partnership” strategy that seeks to boost London’s ties with financial trading hubs after Brexit. The plan is expected to be announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond after next month’s update on public finances, according to another person familiar with the matter.

Security officials are raising alarms over Chinese investment in Israeli technology companies, prompting the Israeli government to scrutinize the money flows and businesses to reconsider accepting Chinese funds. Israel is moving to create an interagency government body to oversee sensitive commercial deals involving foreign companies, U.S. and Israeli officials said, akin to the U.S.’s Committee on Foreign Investment, or Cfius. The effort has been under way in recent months but has taken on added urgency amid recent complaints about Chinese investment from American and Israeli security officials, including national security adviser John Bolton and Israel’s domestic spy chief, U.S. and Israeli officials said. U.S. and Israeli officials said they are especially concerned about stepped-up Chinese investments in Israeli companies whose products are dual use, meaning they have both military and commercial applications, such as drones and artificial intelligence. They also worry about China using Israeli companies as a way to uncover U.S. secrets and about Beijing transferring Israeli technological know-how to its ally, Iran, an arch foe of Israel. Officials said they worry that Chinese government entities could gain access to sensitive information by gaining control over and insight into companies that are in the dual-use space.