Business Industry Capital
Bulgaria
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BNB Exchange Rates
(10.04.2019) |
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EUR |
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1.95583 |
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GBP |
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2.26540 |
USD |
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1.73435 |
CHF |
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1.73543 |
EUR/USD |
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1.1277* |
ECB exchange rate |
Basic Interest Rate |
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as of 01.04 |
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0 % |
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Financial news |
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the Bulgarian economy to grow by a real 3.3% in 2019, up from its October 2018 projection for 3.1% growth. Bulgaria's gross domestic product is then expected to rise by a real 3.0% in 2020, the IMF said in the latest edition of its World Economic Outlook (WEO) report. Annual average consumer price inflation is seen slightly slowing down from 2.6% last year to 2.4% in 2019, and 2.3% in 2020. Unemployment is expected to edge down from 5.2% in 2018 to 5.0% this year and in 2020. Bulgaria’s current account balance calculated as percentage of GDP is projected to fall steadily, but remain positive. The country ended 2018 with a current account surplus of 3.9%, and is expected to post surplus of 1.9% and 1.3% in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
In February 2019, the industrial production index rose 1.5% month-on-month, while compared with the same month of 2018, it climbed 6.6%, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said. On annual basis, production grew 16.3% in the mining and quarrying industry and 9.1% in manufacturing, while power, gas, steam and air conditioning supply registered a 5.2% decrease. Also in February, turnover in retail trade, except motor vehicles and motorcycles, shrank by 0.6% month-on-month and remained nearly unchanged in comparison to February 2018. On annual basis, turnover fell in retail sale of pharmaceutical and medical products (by 9.2%) and in food, beverages and tobacco (by 7.9%), offset by growth in retail sale via mail, phone order or internet, fuel sales, audio and video equipment, hardware, paints and glass, electrical household appliances, among other market segments. In construction, the index of production rose 1.5% against January and 9.2% compared to a year earlier.
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Companies |
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The second automotive factory of the German Witte will be operational in Ruse in May. Thus, after a new investment of EUR 20 million, the manufacturer envisages revenue growth of up to EUR 200 million and employees up to 1500 in the next three years. With this turnover, the plant in the Danube town will probably enter the top 5 of the Bulgarian machine-building companies. Another innovation is that besides the existing locking mechanisms and related components that the Ruse plant makes for Volkswagen, Ford, Volvo, Daimler, BMW, General Motors, Toyota, there will now be a new product. Part of the new production will be front and rear camcorders for the new S-class Mercedes. For the past year, the company's revenue was EUR 100 million, and in 2019 Witte Automotive Bulgaria plans to reach EUR 126 million and over the next two years it expects to reach EUR 180-200 million. Source: Capital
Warsaw-listed Orbis Hotel Group, the strategic partner of AccorHotels in Eastern Europe, will open its first hotel of the ibis Styles brand in the Bulgarian capital in 2021. Orbis Hotel Group has signed an agreement with AccorHotels, owner of the ibis Styles brand, to manage the first hotel of this brand in Sofia. The new hotel - ibis Styles Sofia City, will raise the quality standards in the Bulgarian hospitality business and will support the local economy with a significant investment and the opening of new jobs. The hotel, to be situated at five minutes drive from Sofia international airport and the city centre, will feature 116 rooms. With the future opening Orbis Group, operating in Central and Eastern Europe, will expand its presence in Bulgaria which comprises two hotels - Novotel Sofia and ibis Sofia. Orbis Group plans to open its first hotel in Bulgaria's second largest city of Plovdiv - MGallery by Sofitel, later this year. Source: economic.bg
State-owned Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB) is launching a lending programme with an initial budget of EUR 30 million to support the operating lease of assets to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Long-term credit lines will be provided to companies providing assets to Bulgarian-based SMEs under operating lease in order to ensure improved access to leasing services for the businesses of SMEs. On-lending partners are required to target resources to SMEs, offering them financial advantages and discounts in operating lease deals. The maximum financing available to each on-lending partner is set at EUR 3 million, while the interest rate is set at three-month EURIBOR plus up to 4 percentage points per year. The maximum term for repayment of the BDB loans is 10 years. Leasing companies may apply for financing under the programme until April 30. Source: investor.bg
The Bulgarian company Persy Ltd. supplies servers, workstations and disk arrays to the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). "We have been working with CERN since 2012 and have won the competition from all over Europe. This is a serious attestation for Persy Ltd. and for Bulgaria," said company's manager Alexander Solomahin. Persy has its own brand for computer and server configurations STINGER. They are designed to deliver optimization and hardware security enhancement. This is the result of advances in architecture, memory, information and network technology. The company is a system integrator and manufacturer of high-speed server and computer systems. It has been on the market for more than 29 years and is constantly releasing from leading ideas and technologies in manufacturing. It is ISO 9001:2015, ISO 27000, ISO 14000 certified, as well as AQAP for NATO quality standards.
UK-headquartered OptiBiotix Health has signed a three-year distribution agreement with an unnamed company for the exclusive rights to distribute and commercialise OptiBiotix's CE marked medical device - SlimBiome Medical, in Bulgaria. The agreement grants the distributor exclusive distribution in Bulgaria in return for meeting annual sales targets to retain exclusivity. SlimBiome is used to promote weight loss and will be sold as 30 single dose sachets to pharmacies and wholesalers in Bulgaria. OptiBiotix Health is a life sciences business specialising in the development of compounds tackling obesity, high cholesterol and diabetes.
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Bulgarian Industrial Association
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World
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Europe |
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Britain’s Parliament has passed a law designed to ensure the country does not leave the European Union without a divorce deal. The legislation received final approval from the House of Lords and House of Commons late Monday. It compels the government to ask the EU to delay Brexit, which is currently due to take place Friday. Prime Minister Theresa May has already committed to doing that, but many lawmakers don’t trust the government and want an insurance policy. On Tuesday, Parliament will debate how long an extension to seek. May wants to delay Brexit only until June 30. The country could still crash out of the EU without a deal if the bloc’s leaders refuse to grant a delay. Britain voted to leave the EU almost three years ago, but the complex political process for doing so has become deadlocked. The U.K. has asked for Brexit to be postponed until June 30 so lawmakers in the country’s Parliament can agree on, approve and implement a divorce agreement. Source: Associated Press
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America |
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The United States is threatening to impose tariffs on European goods worth billions of dollars, intensifying a long-running dispute over aircraft subsidies. The United States Trade Representative proposed levies on hundreds of categories of exports on Tuesday in retaliation for the European Union allegedly providing subsidies to Airbus (EADSF). The goods range from Airbus jets and their components to European staples like wine, cheese and frozen fish. These exports are worth about $11 billion every year to European countries, roughly equal to the damage the United States believes the subsidies inflicts on Boeing (BA) and the US economy. "When the EU ends these harmful subsidies, the additional US duties imposed in response can be lifted," US Trade Representative Lighthizer said in the statement. The proposed tariffs are subject to public consultation in the United States and arbitration at the World Trade Organization, which is expected to deliver its findings in the summer. The dispute dates back to 2004, when EU authorities said Boeing received $19 billion in unfair subsidies from federal and state governments between 1989 and 2006.
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Asia |
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China’s state planner wants to eliminate bitcoin mining in the country, according to a draft list of industrial activities the agency is seeking to stop in a sign of growing government pressure on the cryptocurrency sector. China is the world’s largest market for computer hardware designed to mine bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, even though such activities previously fell under a regulatory grey area. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said it was seeking public opinions on a revised list of industries it wants to encourage, restrict or eliminate. The list was first published in 2011. The draft for a revised list added cryptocurrency mining, including that of bitcoin, to more than 450 activities the NDRC said should be phased out as they did not adhere to relevant laws and regulations, were unsafe, wasted resources or polluted the environment. It did not stipulate a target date or plan for how to eliminate bitcoin mining, meaning that such activities should be phased out immediately, the document said. The public has until May 7 to comment on the draft.
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Indexes of Stock Exchanges 09.04.2019 |
Dow Jones Industrial |
26 150.58 |
(-190.44) |
Nasdaq Composite |
7 909.28 |
(-44.61) |
Commodity exchanges 09.04.2019 |
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Commodity |
Price |
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Light crude ($US/bbl.) | 64.11 |
Heating oil ($US/gal.) | 2.0500 |
Natural gas ($US/mmbtu) | 2.7100 |
Unleaded gas ($US/gal.) | 2.0200 |
Gold ($US/Troy Oz.) | 1 306.20 |
Silver ($US/Troy Oz.) | 15.15 |
Platinum ($US/Troy Oz.) | 894.60 |
Hogs (cents/lb.) | 95.15 |
Live cattle (cents/lb.) | 120.35 |
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The first Bulgarian flight in the open space |
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The first Bulgarian to fly in the open space was Georgi Ivanov. His flight was made on 10 April 1979, and lasted two days – until 12 April 1979. Through this flight, Bulgaria became the first nation on the planet to send its representative in outer space. The second Bulgarian-Russian cosmic flight started on June 7 1988, when the Soyuz-TM-5 went into orbit. The second Bulgarian cosmonaut – Alexander Alexandrov, was on the board of the spacecraft. Georgi Ivanov was born in Lovech, Georgi Kakalov attended the Military Air-force School in Dolna Mitropolia. After completing the 5-year education, he served in the Bulgarian National Army as a military pilot. A few years later he became an instructor and head of a division. He, along with Soviet cosmonaut Nikolai Rukavishnikov, was launched into space as part of the Soyuz 33 mission from Baikonur Cosmodrome on April 10, 1979, at 17:34 (GMT). Though take-off was smooth, the mission was a disaster, with severe damage of the engine preventing docking in orbit to Salyut 6 orbital station as it was initially planned. A premature return to Earth became the only possible decision for Ivanov and Rukavishnikov. Due to some additional technical problems landing was difficult to endure — more than 9Gs. When Soyuz 33 finally landed, it was 320 km southeast of Dzhezkazgan. It completed 31 orbits, and was in space for 1 day, 23 hours and 1 minute.
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