Exactly 744 enterprises are the backbone of the Bulgarian economy. These are the companies employing over 250 people. It is these large companies that employ more than 25% of the employed in the country, according to data from the National Statistical Institute. 406 thousand is the total number of non-financial enterprises. Of these, over 92%, or 375,000 companies, have up to 9 people of staff. In many of them there are no employed workers but family members where everyone in the household helps. Over 35% of the smallest companies, or 134,000 companies, operate in the automotive trade and repair sector. The huge number of small trading companies contributes to the fact that many people who lose their jobs try to start their own business in this field. But not everyone manages to stay on the market. Although people's incomes have been increasing, the number of stores has been declining in recent years, according to NSI data, by reducing the number of both grocery and non-food stores. This is due to both the growth of online sales and the expansion of large retail chains.

Among European Union countries, Bulgaria had the highest percentage of people at risk of poverty in 2018, but the country also had seen the largest decrease in people at risk of poverty between 2008 and 2018, EU statistics agency Eurostat said. In 2018, more than a quarter of the population was at risk of poverty or social exclusion in seven EU countries: Bulgaria (32.8 per cent), Romania (32.5 per cent), Greece (31.8 per cent), Latvia (28.4 per cent), Lithuania (28.3 per cent), Italy (27.3 per cent) and Spain (26.1 per cent). At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest shares of persons being at risk of poverty or social exclusion were recorded in the Czech Republic (12.2 per cent), Slovenia (16.2 per cent), Slovakia (16.3 per cent, 2017 data), Finland (16.5 per cent), the Netherlands (16.7 per cent), Denmark and France (both 17.4 per cent) and Austria (17.5 per cent).

Blagoevgrad Municipality has signed a memorandum on setting up an industrial zone. This large-scale project is expected to attract Bulgarian and foreign investors to the town, the municipal administration said. The industrial zone will be built on an 11.5-hectare municipal lot adjoining the E79 road and will be operational in 18 months.This location is expected to attract small and medium-sized businesses, with a focus on high-tech production and high value-added logistics, said Antoaneta Bares, Executive Director of the National Company Industrial Zones (NCIZ). Investors will pay minimal prices for business park space. NCIZ will sign contracts with entrepreneurs specifying that they must complete their projects within three years or return the site. Also, the land and the company cannot be sold in the first three years.

Discordia, a leading logistics and transport company in Bulgaria, plans to invest over BGN 200 million over the next three years, expecting revenues of over BGN 400 million over the same period. The company plans to continue expanding its team in terms of the number of drivers it has, but is also planning a significant increase in the number of employees engaged in administrative activities. This was confirmed by the CEO of the company. "Over the last six years, our employees have increased 6.5 times from 159 people to 1,052 people to date, with Discordia ranked 19th in the country in employee growth in the last year," the company commented. For the next three years the management of the company plans to expand its team in different offices at home and abroad. Currently, the administrative staff is 180, and by 2022 another 140 people are planned to be hired at the headquarters in Sofia, as well as at other offices in Varna, Romania and Ukraine.

The first stage of the construction of the logistics base of Ariete Logistics was officially opened in Pazardzhik. The company is part of the international Ariete Group and has been successfully operating on the Bulgarian and international markets in the field of automotive and logistics for 6 years. In 2018, Ariete Logistics purchased in Pazardzhik a plot of 82,000 square meters for construction on its own production logistics base. As early as September this year, the first phase of the project was completed, which includes more than 5,000 square meters of buildings for storage and production needs, employing more than 400 people. During the 3rd stage of the investment period, the company plans to expand its base to nearly 42,000 square meters of built-up area, employing over 1,000 people.

International broadcaster Central European Media Enterprises (CME) said its operating income before depreciation and amortization (OIBDA) from operations in Bulgaria rose to USD 16.4 million in the first nine months of 2019 from USD 13.1 million in the same period last year. Net revenues from Bulgarian operations fell to USD 58.0 million in the January-September period of the year from USD 59.2 million in the comparable period of 2018. In the third quarter alone, CME's OIBDA in Bulgaria nearly halved to USD 2.4 million from USD 4.5 million a year earlier, as revenue edged down to USD 16.1 million from USD 16.3 million the year before. CME's portfolio in Bulgaria comprises TV channels bTV, bTV Cinema, bTV Comedy, bTV Action, bTV Lady and Ring. Earlier this year, CME announced that it has commenced a process of exploring and evaluating potential strategic alternatives, including a possible sale of part or all of the company.

Bulgarian real estate developer Green Town Projects revealed that Hong Kong-based 235 Holdings Limited has cut its direct shareholding interest in the company to 74.93%. 235 Holdings Limited lowered its stake in the company through a deal concluded on October 11. 235 Holdings Limited held a 78% stake in Green Town Projects on August 27. The Hong Kong-registered company is controlled by private individual Tenyo Latev, who also owns directly a 1.48% stake in Green Town Projects. Green Town Projects' shares started trading on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange in August. In July, the company completed a BGN 4.009 million capital increase. Sofia-based Green Town Projects' main activities include purchase of real estate, real estate leasing as well as engineering and construction, according to data published on the Bulgarian commercial register website. The company was established in November 2018.

German Federal Government has lowered its economic forecast for 2020 significantly, mainly due to weaker world trade. Growth in gross domestic product (GDP) of 1.0 percent is now expected, as Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier said on Thursday in Berlin. In April, the government had predicted a plus of 1.5 percent. But there is no threat of economic crisis, said the CDU politician. For the current year, the forecast remains unchanged: the government, like the leading economic research institutes, expects growth of 0.5 percent. By 2018, gross domestic product had risen by 1.4 percent. Altmaier anticipates a revival of international trade next year. There is also a calendar effect: the year 2020 will have more working days. This alone brings GDP growth of 0.4 percent. At present, especially the export-strong German industry is burdened by international trade conflicts and ambiguity about the Brexit. This creates uncertainty and slows down investment. German key industries such as automotive and mechanical engineering as well as the electrical and chemical industries have long since felt this. Domestic demand is still largely intact, according to Altmaier.

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim said that he expects to invest up to $5 billion in Mexican infrastructure during the current administration as he delivered a full-throated endorsement of the economy despite investor jitters. Speaking at a news conference in Mexico City, Slim said he is "100% in agreement" with the goals of leftist Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, whose economic policies have spooked ratings agencies and investors since his six-year term began in December. Slim and Lopez Obrador, who have collaborated since the politician's time as Mexico City mayor in the early 2000s, appeared to be at odds after Lopez Obrador pulled the plug on a $13 billion new airport project in which Slim was heavily involved. But Slim, in remarks delivered in the offices of his Grupo Financiero Inbursa, gave no hint of animosity. Amid calls from Lopez Obrador to improve connectivity in rural Mexico, Slim said his telecom companies have already ratcheted up investment.

Tesla Inc was added to a government list of approved automotive manufacturers, China’s industry ministry said on Thursday, as it granted the electric-vehicle maker a certificate it needs to start production in the country. The list was published by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. This means “the green light is fully given to Tesla for production in China,” said Yale Zhang, head of the Shanghai-based consultancy Automotive Foresight. Tesla can start production any time, he said Tesla did not immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment. The $2 billion factory it is building in the eastern Chinese city of Shanghai is its first car manufacturing site overseas. Reuters reported earlier this month that Tesla plans to start production at its China factory this month. It is unclear when it will meet year-end production targets because of uncertainties around orders, labor and suppliers. Tesla intends to produce at least 1,000 Model 3s a week from the Shanghai factory by the end of this year, as it tries to boost sales in the world’s biggest auto market and avoid higher import tariffs imposed on U.S. cars.