The prices of consumer goods and services in Bulgaria in 2018 were the lowest in the European Union. This shows an analysis of Eurostat. The data in it indicates that Bulgaria has the lowest prices in 6 out of 10 components that have been extensively researched. Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages in Bulgaria rose to 74.8% of the EU average. This ranks 26 out of 28 countries, which makes it cheaper only in Poland (68%) and Romania (65%). For the next year, alcohol and cigarettes are the cheapest in Bulgaria (58% of the EU average), and in place are Romania and Hungary with over 10% difference. The differences in establishments and hotels of more than 3 times are impressive. In this component, Bulgaria is also last (47% of the EU average) to record is held by Denmark (152%) and Sweden (139%). Other sectors in which Bulgaria comes last are spending on clothing and footwear, home furnishings, transport services and utility spending. The data cover more than 2400 consumer goods and services and are part of the purchasing power program of the Eurostat and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The number of foreign tourists who visited Bulgaria in July 2019 was 3.2 per cent lower than in July 2018, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said. Among visitors from non-EU countries, the largest decrease was in Russian tourists, down by close to 16 compared with July 2018. However, among EU countries, there was a significant increase in UK tourists in Bulgaria in July 2019, up by 21 per cent, according to the NSI. EU citizens made up two-thirds of the foreign visitors to Bulgaria in July 2019, while the figure was 5.2 per cent lower than in July 2018. The number of Irish tourists increased by 19 per cent, Hungarians 6.5 per cent, Romanians 6.1 per cent, Spaniards 3.5 per cent, and French nationals by 1.6 per cent, the NSI said.

The future plant of the smallest Bulgarian cigarette manufacturer Slance Stara Zagora Tabak JSC has found a place in the world tobacco press, with Tobacco Journal International giving a serious attention to the plans of a public company close to Chimimport. Slance Stara Zagora Tabak announced that the business will develop together with a leading international company in the industry, without specifying their intentions. The investment intention of Sila Holding, close to Chimimport majority owner of Slance Stara Zagora Tabak, is to buy between 60 and 80 decares of land at a price of between BGN 1 and 12 million, which should happen for a year and a half, starting in May this year. Once the plant is built, the company will move its cigarette and tobacco production to it. According to the factory's report, last year it produced cigarettes and tobacco worth BGN 9.1 million, with production intended for export only - mainly in Europe, followed by export markets in the Americas and Africa. Slance Stara Zagora Tabak posted an increase in revenues of BGN 3 million compared to 2017, and also generated BGN 3.653 million in profit compared to BGN 239 thousand a year earlier. However, the company report states that it has accumulated a loss from previous periods of BGN 5.5 million.

Sofia Municipality fines contractor PST Grоup SPJSC in downtown Sofia. A sanction of BGN 185,610 is imposed because of poor quality work in the so-called Zone 4, said Deputy Transport Mayor Doncho Barbalov. The first stage of Zone 4 includes Moskovska Street (from GS Rakovski Street to Dunav Street), St. Kliment Ohridski Garden, including a sidewalk along V. Levski Blvd. to the stop of the trolls in front of the Academy of Arts and the Crystal Garden. The second stage involves the space between Rakovski Street, Moskovska Street, V. Levski Square, V. Levski Blvd., Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., Narodno Sabranie Square and the "September 6". Renovations of Zone 4 from the central part of Sofia started last summer, with a total project value of BGN 21.5 million, with most of the funding provided by the Operational Program "Regions in Growth".

On the territory of Vazrajdane Park, which is to be completed by the end of this year, an aqua park and a spa zone will also be built. As part of the program of the Sofia Municipality for the development of the city's green system and for expanding the possibilities for mass sport, in the summer of 2018 the municipal council decided to expand the park by 25 acres and gave the green light to the municipal company Sofia Properties to continue with its repair and to realize the water park project. It will have five outdoor pools, a service building with an indoor pool and a spa area - all supplied with mineral water. The municipal company was authorized to finance the project with BGN 9.9 million. BGN 5.5 million should be financed from the company itself and the rest is planned to be obtained from the Urban Development Fund of the Operational Program "Regions for Growth". At the end of last year, a contractor was also selected, and on January 4 this year, Sofia Properties officially signed a contract with Kalistratov Group to build the facility in the new part of Vazrajdane Park. The contract term is 342 days. For the implementation of the project, the contractor will receive BGN 9.54 million excluding VAT - an amount very close to the maximum estimated value.

Bulgarian farming group Agria Group Holding has invested EUR 2.25 million during the first half of 2019 in the purchase of farm land and farming equipment, as well as in expanding the capacity of its storage facilities. Agria Group Holding invested EUR 457,000 in farm land acquisitions in the review period, and EUR 739,000 in farming equipment during the review period. The group also invested EUR 519,000 in expanding its storage facilities, and a further EUR 535,000 in the upgrade of its vehicle fleet. Agria Group Holding's main clients include Glencore Grain, Cargill Bulgaria, Soufflet Negoce - France, ADM Bulgaria and others.

Telecommunications company Telenor Bulgaria, a unit of Czech-owned PPF Group, said that its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by an annual 1.2% to BGN 82 million in the second quarter of 2019. Telenor Bulgaria generated an EBITDA of BGN 89 million in the first quarter of 2019. The company's revenue added 1.4% year-on-year to BGN 180 million in the April-June period of 2019. Average revenue per user (ARPU) increased by 8% to BGN 15.5 in the second quarter. Telenor Bulgaria's clients decreased slightly during the review period, and numbered 3.04 million at the end of June. On the Bulgarian mobile segment, the company competes with A1 Bulgaria, the local unit of Telekom Austria and Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC), which operates under the brand name Vivacom.

Britain’s opposition parties said they had agreed to work together to try and prevent a no-deal Brexit, including through passing legislation or holding a vote of no-confidence in the government. Parliament returns from its summer break next week and is preparing for a battle with new Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has vowed to take Britain out of the European Union at the end of October, with or without an exit agreement. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn hosted talks with the Scottish National Party, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and the Independent Group for Change on Tuesday to discuss tactics to prevent a no-deal exit. “The attendees agreed on the urgency to act together to find practical ways to prevent No Deal, including the possibility of passing legislation and a vote of no-confidence,” the parties said in a joint statement after the meeting.

Brazil rejected aid from G7 countries to fight wildfires in the Amazon, with a top official telling French President Emmanuel Macron to take care of "his home and his colonies." More than 80,000 forest fires have broken out in Brazil since the beginning of the year -- just over half of them in the massive Amazon basin that regulates part of Earth's carbon cycle and climate. G7 countries made the $20 million aid offer to fight the blazes at the Biarritz summit hosted by Macron, who insisted they should be discussed as a top priority. "We appreciate (the offer), but maybe those resources are more relevant to reforest Europe," Onyx Lorenzoni, chief of staff to President Jair Bolsonaro, said. "Macron cannot even avoid a foreseeable fire in a church that is a world heritage site," he added, referring to the fire in April that devastated the Notre-Dame cathedral. "What does he intend to teach our country?" The presidency later confirmed the comments. Brazilian environment Minister Ricardo Salles had earlier told reporters they had welcomed the G7 funding to fight the fires that have prompted the deployment of the army.

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono said he urged Iran to abide by a 2015 nuclear deal during a meeting on Tuesday with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif. The men agreed to maintain close communication between Japan and Iran, which historically have had friendly ties, to ease tension between the United States and Iran, Kono said. “Based on Japan’s stance of consistently supporting the nuclear agreement, I asked the Iranian side to observe the agreement, to go back immediately to the commitments of the agreement, and to refrain from taking measures that would infringe on the agreement,” Kono said. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the 2015 agreement last year and reimposed sanctions on Iran. In response, Iran has slowly been breaching its side of the deal, under which Tehran agreed to curbs on its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of many international sanctions. The standoff over the nuclear deal has caused a sharp increase in tensions between the two longtime foes.