Unemployment in Bulgaria is record low and, at the same time, the cost of State Social Security for unemployment benefits is rising, according to data from the analysis of the National Social Security Institute. According to NSSI experts, the main reason for the significant increase in the cost of compensation for the unemployed is the higher average amount of this compensation. For 2018 it is BGN 478, while in 2014 it was BGN 267. If in 2014 people with a right to unemployment benefit were just over 100,000, last year they are nearly 29,000 less, ie the amount of compensation is rising faster than the number of unemployed declines. The reason for this growth is that the average daily allowance is 60% of the average daily pay on which a person is insured, and it grows. In addition, the minimum daily allowance from January last year increased from BGN 7.20 to BGN 9. The change in the structure of recipients of unemployment benefits is also among the reasons for the growth of benefits.

Bulgaria aims to deepen its cooperation with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and has drafted an action plan as part of its efforts, the international organisation said. Bulgaria's action plan addresses 21 policy areas which are of crucial importance for the key reform priorities of the country, including economic policy, investment and financial affairs. “The activities outlined in the Action Plan will give Bulgaria access to key information and recommendations to develop and strengthen its reform agenda in favour of strong, inclusive and sustainable growth,” OECD said. OECD is willing to provide expertise and share its best practices in order to help Bulgaria advance its reforms agenda. For this purpose, the organisation will conduct a number of policy reviews in several areas of the Bulgarian economy. Bulgaria is not among the 36 members of the OECD, although it expressed its wish to become a member for the first time in 1992.

The English Supreme Court rejected the experience of offshore companies to challenge the ownership of Vivacom, the largest Bulgarian telecom. The complaint by LIC Telecommunications SARL, Luxembourg, and Empreno Ventures Limited, British Virgin Islands, was aimed at challenging the deal by which Vivacom was sold to the current owners by auction after the previous owners broke the terms of their loan. After numerous litigation in Luxembourg and Bulgaria, the plaintiffs turned to the English court, claiming that the sale was illegal, undervalued and should be reviewed. After six days of hearings, the English judge dismissed the latest claims, too. Spas Rusev, Vivacom's largest shareholder, welcomed the court's decision and commented: "The company was acquired after a fully legitimate and competitive bidding process. The claimants repeatedly and in various ways tried to challenge the process of acquiring ownership, but unsuccessfully. Their purpose was to publicly hurt the company's image through the media and many court cases to gain control over the company, but they failed each time. "

Fuel retailer OMV Bulgaria, part of Austrian energy group OMV, will open two new filling stations in 2019. One of the stations will be located near Plovdiv, while the other will be on the motorway connecting Sofia and Pernik. The company opened two new stations in 2018. OMV Bulgaria's capital investments increased to BGN 11.3 million last year from BGN 11.0 million in 2017, and were mainly focused on its filling stations grid. OMV entered the Bulgarian market in 1998 and operated 93 filling stations across the country at the end of 2018 - 91 under the OMV brand, and two under its Avanti brand.

The Bulgarian producer of veterinary medicines and human medicine Huvepharma has acquired two new factories in France (Qualian and Laboratoire Meriel) and one in Italy (Qualian Italy), according to the company's financial statement for 2018. At the end of last year the unconsolidated profit of Huvepharma reached BGN 118.6 million and the sales amounted to BGN 528.5 million, compared to BGN 490.3 million a year earlier, according to the report. Huvepharma’s assets increased to BGN 833.7 million at the end of 2018, and a year earlier they amounted to BGN 695.6 million after an increase in the receivables from related parties. Administrative expenses increased from BGN 36.5 million to BGN 39 million. Expenditure related to manufacturing activity increased to BGN 308.4 million from BGN 281.5 million in 2017 and sales and distribution costs increased to BGN 41.7 million compared to BGN 39.2 million a year earlier. Huvepharma has offices and subsidiaries in Bulgaria, Belgium, Poland, China, Taiwan, Thailand, USA, Russia, India, Brazil and Turkey.

Bulgarian copper miner Elatsite-Med said that its net profit fell to BGN 141.7 million in 2018 from BGN 147.0 million the year before, due to a rise in expenses. Elatsite-Med's sales revenue edged up to BGN 516.0 million last year from BGN 512.5 million in 2017. Expenses for materials grew to BGN 151.7 million from BGN 136.8 million the year before, while expenses for hired services rose to BGN 131.4 million from BGN 114.4 million. Personnel expenses increased to BGN 61.9 million from BGN 53.0 million. The company's amortisation costs edged up to BGN 29.3 million in 2018 from BGN 27.2 million in 2017. Elatsite-Med's assets grew to BGN 560.3 million at the end of 2018 from BGN 532.4 million a year earlier, due to a rise in real estate, machinery and equipment. The company employed 1,853 people in 2018, compared to 1,808 in 2017.

Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company Bulgaria will distribute a total of BGN 73.5 million as dividend for 2018. Coca-Cola HBC Bulgaria's shareholders approved the proposed dividend payout at a general meeting held on June 20. The company's net profit rose to BGN 73.5 million in 2018 from BGN 66.9 million in 2017, backed by higher revenue. Coca-Cola HBC 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.

Britain’s competition regulator has stepped in to pause Amazon’s deal with online food delivery group Deliveroo while it considers launching a full investigation. Amazon led a $575 million fundraising in Deliveroo in May, making what the two parties called “a minority investment” and going up against Uber Eats in the global race to dominate the market for takeaway meal deliveries. On Friday Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority said it served an initial enforcement order (IEO) on the two companies on June 24, signaling possible concerns about the transaction. The regulator, which referred to Amazon’s investment as “a minority shareholding” said it had reasonable grounds for suspecting that Amazon and Deliveroo “have ceased to be distinct” or were putting in place or considering arrangements which would result in them “ceasing to be distinct”. The order requires Amazon and Deliveroo to operate independently for now, meaning they cannot press ahead with the tie-up. It gives the regulator time to decide if it will launch a formal “Phase 1” competition probe.

President Trump insists his multi-front trade wars are working, but the U.S. trade deficit rose to a five-month high in May as the politically sensitive imbalances with China and Mexico widened. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the gap between the goods and services the U.S. sells and what it buys from foreign countries rose 8.4% to $55.5 billion in May, the highest since December. Exports increased 2% to $210.6 billion on rising shipments of soybeans, aircraft and cars. But imports climbed more — 3.3% to $266.2 billion — on an increase in crude oil and cellphones. The deficit in the trade of goods with Mexico rose 18.1% to a record $9.6 billion. The goods gap with China widened 12.2% to $30.2 billion. Mr. Trump has sought to reduce America's persistent trade deficit, which he sees as a sign of economic weakness and the result of bad trade agreements crafted by naive U.S. negotiators. He has slapped tariffs on foreign steel, aluminum, dishwashers, solar panels and on thousands of Chinese goods. He also has renegotiated a trade pact with Canada and Mexico that awaits approval by Congress.

India said it needs USD 330 billion in investments over the next decade to power its renewable energy dream, but coal would remain central to its electricity generation. The energy guzzling country wants to raise its renewable energy capacity to 500 Gigawatts (GW), or 40% of total capacity, by 2030. Renewables currently account for 22% of India's total installed capacity of about 357 GW. "Additional investments in renewable plants up to year 2022 would be about USD 80 billion at today's prices and an investment of around USD 250 billion would be required for the period 2023-2030," according to the government's economic survey presented to parliament on Thursday. India wants to have 175 GW of renewable-based installed power capacity by 2022. The investment estimate reflects the magnitude of financial challenges facing one of the world's most important growth markets for renewable energy, with government data indicating a growth slowdown in private and capital investments in the year ended March 2019. India, which receives twice as much sunshine as European countries, wants to make solar a cornerstone of its renewable expansion, but also wants to make use of its cheap and abundant coal reserves, the fifth-largest in the world.