Business Industry Capital
Bulgaria
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BNB Exchange Rates
(01.07.2019) |
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EUR |
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1.95583 |
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GBP |
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2.18151 |
USD |
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1.71866 |
CHF |
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1.76122 |
EUR/USD |
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1.1380* |
ECB exchange rate |
Basic Interest Rate |
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as of 01.07 |
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0 % |
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Financial news |
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Bulgaria's industrial producer price index (PPI) rose 2.8% year-on-year in May, after increasing 4.3% in April, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said on Friday. Producer prices in May remained unchanged compared to April, the NSI said in a monthly report. The PPI on the domestic market climbed 3.4% on the year and edged down 0.1% month-on-month in May. The PPI on the non-domestic market advanced 1.9% on the year and was remained the same compared to the value recorded in April.
The Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) decided to reduce the natural gas price by 0.6 per cent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2019, the regulator said. The natural gas price for Q3 is set at 44.90 BGN/MWh, exclusive of charges for access, transmission, excise duty and VAT, which is 0.6 per cent less than the price in the second quarter of 2019. The natural gas price set by the Commission does not include charges for accessing and using the natural gas transmission network, which customers have to pay to end suppliers. When setting the natural gas price, EWRC takes into account the terms and conditions of the agreement between Bulgargaz JSC and OOO Gazprom Export, the changes in the USD to BGN exchange rate, the calorific value and quantities fo natural gas for the relevant quarter. Source: BTA
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Companies |
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German company Lindner Group will invest EUR 13 mln in a plant for the production of facade elements in Rousse, according to a statement from Ruse Municipality. The investment will provide nearly 200 new jobs. Ruse Mayor Plamen Stoilov met representatives of the company, who presented their investment intention. The investment will be realized through a subsidiary of the German group - Lindner Building Envelope Engineering LTD. The new production facility will be located on 67,000 sq.m. The company has chosen Ruse because of its strategic location on the banks of the Danube River and near the border with Romania, as well as the Ruse University "Angel Kanchev" and the many good vocational high schools. The company also wants to offer a training program in Bulgaria to expand Lindner's team of professionals around the world. Source: investor.bg
Bulgaria's energy regulator has approved a 0.60% decrease in the regulated wholesale gas price for the third quarter of 2019, in line with the proposal of state-owned gas supplier Bulgargaz. The new price will be BGN 44.90 per MWh, free of VAT and excise. Bulgarian energy regulations require Bulgargaz to set the gas price quarterly, taking into account global oil prices and the lev/dollar exchange rate. The Energy and Water Regulatory Commission has the final say on proposed changes in the wholesale price, at which the company sells natural gas to end-suppliers and customers directly connected to its transmission network. Bulgaria imports most of the natural gas it needs from Russia through a pipeline crossing the territories of Ukraine, Moldova and Romania. Source: Monitor
Maltese iGaming solutions provider Aspire Global has agreed to acquire 100% of Isle of Man-registered casino gaming services developer GMS Entertainment Limited, which is active in Bulgaria through its unit Pariplay, for EUR 13.1 million. Pariplay, which produces online casino games, has a team of around 70 gaming experts, the majority of which are based in the Bulgarian capital Sofia where the company's main technology hub is located. The transaction is to be finalised in the third quarter of 2019 conditional on approval from authorities. Pariplay group holds iGaming licenses for the UK, Gibraltar, Curacao, Malta and Romania and their games are certified for most regulated iGaming markets in Europe, generating sales of around USD 3.2 million. Aspire Global is listed on NASDAQ First North Premier under ASPIRE.
Fitch Ratings has placed Eurohold Bulgaria's Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR), and the Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) ratings of three of the group's subsidiaries on rating watch negative (RWN). The RWN follows the announcement that Eurohold plans to acquire the Bulgarian assets of the Czech power utility company CEZ for EUR 335 million. The completion of the transaction is subject to approvals from Bulgaria's Commission for Protection of Competition and the Bulgarian energy regulator. The three units of Eurohold put on RWN are Insurance Company Euroins, Euroins Romania Asigurare Reasigurare and Insurance Company EIG Re.
Grain trader ADM Bulgaria Trading, part of US food processing group Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM), said that its net profit more than doubled to BGN 4.9 million in 2018 from BGN 2.1 million in 2017. The company's operating revenue fell to BGN 411.7 million last year from BGN 517.6 million in 2017. Cost of goods sold dropped to BGN 405.9 million in 2018 from BGN 510.4 million the year before. The lower sales revenue was mainly due to exports to Spain and Switzerland. Sales in Spain sank to just BGN 2,000 last year from BGN 57.6 million, while exports to Switzerland declined to 45.8 million levs from BGN 130.3 million. Revenue from domestic sales rose to BGN 143.8 million from BGN 114.3 million. Financial expenses fell to BGN 546,000 from BGN 7.1 million in 2017. The company's assets decreased sharply to BGN 26.9 million at the end of 2018 from BGN 80.8 million a year earlier, due to a drop in inventory.
Bulgaria's Commission for Protection of Competition has allowed local pesticides producer Agria to acquire pesticides trader Campo 2007. The two companies operate on competitive market segments which include a large number of subsidiaries of large foreign corporations and the deal is not expected to lead to the establishment of a dominant position. Agria generated consolidated revenue of BGN 109.9 million in 2017 and closed the year with a net profit of BGN 15.1 million. Campo 2007 booked revenue of BGN 10.3 million and a net profit of BGN 352,000 in 2017. The company is 50/50 owned by local companies MMS-99 and Ambus. Earlier this year, Agria said that it also intends to acquire Lichtenstein-based Zenith Crop Sciences.
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Bulgarian Industrial Association
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World
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Europe |
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Britain’s current account deficit with the rest of the world ballooned to its highest since late 2016 earlier this year, official figures showed on Friday, though much of the increase was driven by volatile gold trades. At first glance, the bigger shortfall in the deficit — which Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has long warned leaves Britain dependent “on the kindness of strangers” — suggested greater vulnerability for the world’s fifth-largest economy ahead of Brexit. The deficit widened by 6.3 billion pounds in the first three months of 2019 to 30.0 billion pounds, or 5.6% of economic output, its biggest since the third quarter of 2016. However, the ONS said the rise was driven by imports of unspecified goods — mostly gold from London’s major trading hub — rather than a fundamental weakening of the trade balance. Stripping this out, Britain’s current account deficit would stand at 3.7% — still large by international standards. A drop-off in foreign demand for British assets after Brexit could trigger a further fall in sterling and make it harder for businesses and consumers to raise finance or borrow, the BoE has warned.
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America |
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US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi bowed to pressure from President Donald Trump's Republicans as Congress approved US$4.6 billion in emergency aid to ease a swelling migrant crisis on the nation's southern border. One day after the Senate passed the administration-backed measure, the House of Representatives followed suit with a bipartisan vote of 305 to 102 that sends the bill to the president's desk. The emergency money would provide a much-needed financial injection to facilities along the US-Mexico border, amid a growing crisis that has seen migrant children housed in squalid conditions, sometimes with no soap, toothpaste or showers, little adult supervision and insufficient food. The measure funds agencies like the Department of Homeland Security and the Health and Human Services Department which have been overwhelmed by an influx of migrants, mostly from Central America, arriving at the southern border. The two US political parties had been battling over border funding for months.
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Asia |
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China reported external liabilities climbing 4.6 percent by the end of March from the end of 2018, the forex regulator said. The volume came in at 5.43 trillion U.S. dollars, according to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE). In breakdown, foreign direct investment rose by 3.7 percent, or 101.2 billion U.S. dollars from 2018, while Chinese securities owned by foreign investors jumped by 14.5 percent, or 159.3 billion U.S. dollars during the same period. By March, China's external financial assets stood at 7.38 trillion U.S. dollars, up 0.8 percent from last year, with outbound direct investment and securities investment assets climbing 1.5 percent and 9.6 percent respectively. Meanwhile, China's external net assets fell 8.4 percent from 2018 to 1.95 trillion U.S. dollars by March. SAFE spokesperson Wang Chunying attributed the fall to the surge of share prices in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong stock markets in the first quarter (Q1), which led to an increase in liabilities of securities investment. Overall, the scale of China's reserve assets continued to rank first in the world with steady growth in various kinds of foreign investment, Wang said.
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Indexes of Stock Exchanges 28.06.2019 |
Dow Jones Industrial |
26 599.96 |
(73.38) |
Nasdaq Composite |
8 006.24 |
(38.49) |
Commodity exchanges 28.06.2019 |
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Commodity |
Price |
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Light crude ($US/bbl.) | 59.84 |
Heating oil ($US/gal.) | 1.9800 |
Natural gas ($US/mmbtu) | 2.3200 |
Unleaded gas ($US/gal.) | 1.9400 |
Gold ($US/Troy Oz.) | 1 395.70 |
Silver ($US/Troy Oz.) | 15.27 |
Platinum ($US/Troy Oz.) | 840.40 |
Hogs (cents/lb.) | 76.00 |
Live cattle (cents/lb.) | 104.35 |
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