The activities of Bulgaria's accession to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will cost BGN 2.82 mln. The money will be used for the activities of 10 ministries, the National Statistical Institute and the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, in accordance with the OECD Accession Roadmap for Bulgaria. Bulgaria's membership of the OECD is one of Bulgaria's foreign policy priorities, and receiving a call for talks is one of the immediate goals of the government. Late last month, Economy Minister Emil Karanikolov presented Bulgaria's Roadmap to the OECD Council in Paris. He then held a meeting with the Secretary General of the Organization, Ángel Gurría, to discuss the country's progress in the pre-accession process. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development was established in 1961 with the aim of promoting policies for sustainable economic development, raising the standard of living of the population and maintaining financial stability. Currently, the OECD includes 37 members from Europe, North America, South America and Asia. The European Commission participates in the work of the organization as an observer.

The monthly inflation in September was 0.3 per cent, the National Statistical Institute reported here on Monday. The inflation rate since the beginning of the year (September 2019 compared to December 2018) was 1.7 per cent and the annual inflation in September 2019 compared to September 2018 was 2.3 per cent. The annual average inflation in the period from October 2018 to September 2019 compared to the previous 12 months (October 2017- September 2018) was 3.1 per cent.

The Council of Ministers has accepted the proposal of Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company Bulgaria to build a new well at the Bankya mineral water field near Sofia. The contract for the use of a state-owned mineral water concession will be modified. Coca Cola is a concessionaire of the field since 2001, from which it has the right to extract mineral water from two wells - N 1xg Ivanyane and TC No. 1 Ivanyane . The amount of the investment for the new water intake facility the concessionaire is not indicated.

Bulgaria’s government raised the subsidies that it could allocate to car manufacturer Volkswagen to EUR 260 mln in case the German company picks up Bulgaria for its new car-making plant, according to information from the German publication Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Former Bulgarian President and current chair of Automobile cluster Bulgaria Rosen Plevneliev was quoted to have said that the authorities found an appropriate way to increase the subsidies from the initially proposed EUR 135 mln. Bulgaria continues to make efforts to attract VW although the latter has been reportedly inclined to making the investment in neighboring Turkey due to higher subsidies and state aid proposed by the Turkish authorities. However, the complicated political situation after Turkey’s army entered Syria resulted in a new postponement of VW’s final decision on its new car plant location in the past few days. Besides the subsidy, Bulgaria proposed to VW a large industrial zone next to Sofia Airport.

The Ministry of Health announced which candidates are being tendered for the construction of the National Children's Hospital. Three consortia have stated their willingness to engage in activities valued at over BGN 95 million. The first is the association Children's Hospital-Sofia, which includes the Bulgarian company Klimatronik and Innovaciones Técnicas En Cimentación SA DE SV Proes Consultores SA. The second offer is from a consortium, that includes three companies of Glavbolgarstroy Holding. The third proposal is from the Health for the Children of Bulgaria association. Participants include Trace Group Hold, Smart Build Digital, Monolith and Engproject. In the next 40 days, the Commission evaluating the bids will have to review them, after which the bids of the tenderers will be opened, which includes activities such as design, construction and copyright. The hospital should be built on the site of the unfinished pediatric clinic building in the yard of Alexandrovska Hospital.

Telecommunications company A1 Bulgaria said that its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by an annual 13.4% to EUR 137.6 million in the first nine months of 2019. A1 Bulgaria's revenue grew by 6.5% to EUR 348.5 million in the January-September period of 2019. The company's revenue was backed by its fixed-line business, which saw a 15% increase to EUR 86.9 million in the review period. Mobile services revenue added 5.9% to EUR 194.8 million in the first nine months of the year. The number of A1 Bulgaria's mobile services subscribers decreased by an annual 2.5% to some 3.92 million at the end of September, while the average revenue per user (ARPU) increased by 9.3%. In the third quarter alone, A1 Bulgaria grew its EBITDA by 13.6% to EUR 49.8 million on the back of an 11.8% increase in revenue, to EUR 122 million. A1 Bulgaria competes with Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC), which operates under the brand name Vivacom, and Telenor Bulgaria, owned by Czech Republic-owned investment group PPF.

Bulgarian water utility ViK - Stara Zagora will invest over BGN 122 million in the construction and reconstruction of water supply and sewage infrastructure. The project envisages construction of 100 kilometres of water supply pipes and upgrade of the city's waste water treatment plant. Water losses from the supply network are expected to decrease by 14% as a result of the project. Over 226,000 people in Stara Zagora, Kazanlak, Radnevo and Chirpan will benefit from the investment. The project will be partially financed with EU funds under Operational Programme Environment 2014-2020. The deadline for completing works is 49 months.

Bulgaria's Ttrust Asset Management is planning to decrease its registered capital by BGN 4.495 million to just BGN 5,000. The reason for the decision is the fact that the company's previous capital increase was aimed at raising funds which were then supposed to finance investment projects of a banking institution, but the deal with the lender subsequently fell through. The current ownership structure will be retained following the capital decrease, with US-based Zeitgeist Ventures holding 50%, and Lichtenstein-registered PFHC Limited and Metu owning the remaining 45.5% and 4.5%, respectively. The company's owners approved the plan at a general meeting held of October 3.

Italy approved a new tax on digital companies, including U.S. tech giants, as part of its 2020 draft budget, a move that could draw threats of retaliation from Washington. The levy, due to be introduced from next year, will oblige companies such as Facebook, Google and Amazon, to pay a 3% levy on internet transactions, according to a text of the draft budget. Washington has repeatedly said the levy unfairly targeted U.S. firms. A senior U.S. official said President Donald Trump was ready to threaten retaliation when he meets Italian President Sergio Mattarella in Washington on Wednesday. The Italian scheme is expected to yield about 600 million euros ($662 million) a year, as Rome tries to find alternative revenues that will allow it to avoid a scheduled increase in sales tax. Italy and other European Union members have long complained about the way web giants collect huge profits in their countries but pay only a few million euros in taxes each year. But the EU has so far failed to agree as a bloc on how to tax the firms.

J.P. Morgan Chase posted profit and record revenue that exceeded expectations on the strength of consumer banking operations that helped the bank mitigate the impact of lower interest rates. The bank said third-quarter profit rose 8% to $9.1 billion, or $2.68 a share, exceeding the $2.45 estimate of analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. Revenue also rose 8% to a record $30.1 billion, exceeding the $28.5 billion estimate. The bank cited growth in home loans, auto and credit cards. The stock rose 3.1%. “The consumer remains healthy with growth in wages and spending, combined with strong balance sheets and low unemployment levels,” CEO Jamie Dimon said in the earnings release. “This is being offset by weakening business sentiment and capital expenditures mostly driven by increasingly complex geopolitical risks, including tensions in global trade.” Banks have trailed the broader indexes this year on worries the Federal Reserve’s shift to easing rates will squeeze the industry’s profit margins. The Fed cut rates twice in the third quarter to avert a slowdown, and banks including J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo warned last month that net interest income would be lower than earlier guidance.

Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s third-quarter revenue jumped 27%, driven by a surge in shipments of smartphones launched before a trade blacklisting by the United States expected to hammer its business. Huawei, the world’s biggest maker of telecom network equipment and the No. 2 manufacturer of smartphones, was all but banned by the United States in May from doing business with American companies, significantly disrupting its ability to source key parts. The company has been granted a reprieve until November, meaning it will lose access to some technology next month. Huawei has so far mainly sold smartphones that were launched before the ban. Its newest Mate 30 smartphone - which lacks access to a licensed version of Google’s Android operating system - started sales last month. Huawei in August said the curbs would hurt less than initially feared, but could still push its smartphone unit’s revenue lower by about $10 billion this year. The tech giant did not break down third-quarter figures but said on Wednesday revenue for the first three quarters of the year grew 24.4% to 610.8 billion yuan.