Bulgaria reported a negative net flow of foreign direct investment (FDI) of EUR 437.6 million in January-February, which compares to a positive net flow of EUR 236.6 million in the first two months of 2018. The negative net flow, calculated according to the directional principle, was equal to 0.7% of the central bank's forecast for Bulgaria's gross domestic product in 2019. The net flow in equity, which represents the decisions of non-residents to acquire or dispose of shares and equities in cash and contributions in kind in the capital and reserves of Bulgarian enterprises, recorded a negative value of EUR 574.3 million in the January-February period of 2019, compared to a negative value of EUR 117.7 million in January-February 2018. The largest positive net direct investment inflow in Bulgaria in January-February, of EUR 70 million, came from Ireland. The Netherlands and Luxembourg followed with EUR 43.3 million and EUR 33.4 million, respectively.

Bulgaria's current account surplus widened to EUR 511.1 million in the first two months of 2019 from EUR 57 million in the same period of last year, the central bank said on Wednesday. The current account surplus in January-February was equivalent to 0.9% of the central bank's forecast for Bulgaria's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) said in a monthly balance of payments report.

The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) are assisting the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communications in conducting a competitive bidding procedure for a concession contract for Sofia Airport by applying the best world practices. Five investors of solid international reputation have submitted offers in the procedure which was launched by the government last year. The World Bank pointed to a global trend over the last two decades for the private sector to take over the management of airports, most often by using the model of public-private partnership, including through concession contracts.

Czech energy group CEZ has granted Eurohold exclusivity in further negotiations in the acquisition of CEZ' Bulgarian assets. The story says that with this decision the Indian Power consortium falls out of the game as a bidder and CEZ's withdrawal from the Bulgarian market enters a new phase. The paper recalls that last week CEZ ended negotiations with Inercom, the first bidder for the CEZ assets with which it signed a tentative contract early last year. The deal with Inercom was blocked by a negative opinion of the national anti-trust authority. It is not yet known how much Eurohold offers for the CEZ business in Bulgaria. According to Lidovky's sources, the offer was more attractive than the Indian investors'. Inercom offered EUR 355 million for the Bulgarian networks. The problem with Inercom was that it was a little-known company and there were doubts about the origin of money it would have used for the CEZ deal.

A high-tech factory with Turkish-German capital is being built near Kuklen. The investment is BGN 12 million and 100 specialists will be hired. They will make digital-programming machines to be exported worldwide. It is expected to start production in September. "The industrial area around Kuklen is expanding and there are 9 factories, which is why the government has allocated BGN 800,000 for infrastructure, and two roads with underground communications have already been built and street lighting has been installed," said the deputy mayor of the municipality Hristo Bozhinov. Currently, the construction of a Turkish factory for Mercedes-Benz headlamps continues in the area near Kuklen. It will start test production by the end of this year, and serial production - by December 2023. The company has bought a plot of 92 decares, and in the next four years intends to raise two more plants and a sub-supplier park. The total investment in the three factories is EUR 40 million. Economy Minister Emil Karanikolov awarded a class A investor certificate to the company. The first headlamp factory will employ 140 people - engineers and middle technicians.

Bulgarian agricultural and building machines trader Megatron has opened a new trade and services centre worth over EUR 2.5 million in Bulgarovo, near the coastal city of Burgas. The new business centre started operating on April 16. The new centre has a showroom, office space, conference hall, storage space as well as a service station for repairs. The new centre will initially employ 15 people, with the number of employees set to increase to 25 at a later stage. This is the sixth trade and services centre of Megatron in Bulgaria after the centres in Pleven, Dobrich, Stara Zagora, Yambol and Montana. Megatron is an official representative of a number of manufacturers, including John Deere, KUHN, Doosan Infracore Construction Equipment and Bobcat.

Bulgaria's Recrex Consulting is planning to launch operations as an insurance intermediary in Romania, according to a statement by Bulgaria's Financial Supervision Commission (FSC). The FSC has asked Recrex Consulting to provide further information and documents regarding its intention to enter the Romanian market, the regulator said in a statement. Recrex Consulting, established in 2015, is fully owned by private investor Daniela Badaluta, according to data from Bulgaria's commercial register.

Bulgarian diversified group Bulgartabac Holding said that its shareholders have approved the management's proposal to change the company's name to Bulgarian Investment Holding. The proposal was approved at a general meeting held on April 11. The proposal was supported by 76.7% of the present shareholders, controlling a total of 65.9% of the company's registered capital. The company is now due to enter the change into the commercial register. In 2017, the group sold its biggest cigarette brands for more than EUR 100 million to British American Tobacco (BAT). Also in 2017, Bulgartabac Holding acquired local consumer electronics retailer Technomarket and milk products producer Lodis Invest, thus diversifying its portfolio.

The European Union published its preliminary list of U.S. goods being targeted in a $12 billion plan for retaliatory tariffs over subsidies to Boeing Co., with a focus on farm products from areas that help form President Donald Trump’s political base. The European Commission began a public consultation over the American products ranging from ketchup and nuts to video-game consoles and bicycle pedals. The World Trade Organization will ultimately decide the level of damages the EU can seek, with a verdict possible toward the end of this year or in early 2020. The EU retaliation plan follows a U.S. threat to seek $11 billion in damages through duties on European goods ranging from helicopters to cheeses to counter state aid to Airbus SE. Both moves stem from parallel, 14-year-old, disputes at the WTO over market-distorting support for aircraft makers. Crosscurrents are rippling through transatlantic trade ties as the EU and U.S. prepare for negotiations on removing industrial tariffs. At the same time, the two sides are engaging in renewed sparring over aircraft aid and Trump’s “America First” protectionism, especially his controversial duties on foreign steel and aluminum based on national-security grounds and a threat he has kept alive to apply automotive levies on the same basis.

Tech giant Apple and Qualcomm have settled a legal dispute over royalties and patents, and it has Wall Street analysts buzzing over the chipmaker’s prospects moving forward. Analysts at Stifel, J.P. Morgan and Evercore ISI all upgraded Qualcomm on Tuesday’s news. Mizuho Securities, meanwhile, hiked its price target on Qualcomm to $82 per share from $62, implying a 16.3% upside from Tuesday’s close. Canaccord Genuity also raised its price target to $89 per share from $75 and reiterated its buy rating on the company. Apple agreed to pay Qualcomm an undisclosed amount of money in the settlement and struck a chipset supply deal, which suggests the iPhone maker will buy Qualcomm chips for future smartphones. This removes a massive overhang from Qualcomm and clears the way for both companies to focus on 5G technology. However, some analysts say Qualcomm still faces headwinds, including a lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission. Qualcomm shares skyrocketed 13 percent at Wednesday’s opening of trading.

China on Wednesday released a slew of official economic data that beat expectations, including the widely anticipated gross domestic product figure. Beijing said its economy expanded by 6.4 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2019, topping the 6.3 percent that analysts polled by Reuters had expected. China’s economy grew by 6.4 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of last year, and 6.8 percent in the first quarter of 2018. Investors have been watching the health of the Chinese economy — the world’s second largest — amid Beijing’s ongoing trade dispute with Washington. Official GDP figures are widely followed, but many experts have long expressed skepticism about the veracity of China’s reports. On the latest set of official data, analysts attributed the generally better-than-expected performance to measures taken by Beijing to support the economy.