Two women placed among the 25 wealthiest Bulgarians in 2013. A business deal for the purchase of a golf club was sealed for the first time in Bulgaria- the golf ground was bought by a Chinese billionaire. It turned out that the middle class in that country has not vanished as a result of the economic crisis and that grey economy has avoided paying taxes worth EUR 6 billion for the past four years. Perhaps, this is what turned Bulgaria into the biggest market of second-hand cars in the Balkans. Undercover agents are to visit the retail chains and inspect the food sold there. These are only some of the highlights of today’s review of business and economy.

Bulgaria will reject the EU demand for a 40% reduction of the CO2 emissions, said Bulgarian Minister of Economy and Energy Dragomir Stoynev. If such measures are adopted, many companies would certainly leave the country and do business outside the EU. Minister Stoynev also disagrees with the requirements towards the water power plants. “The EU should not decide on the number of such plants in certain states. However, the sharp increase in the number of these plants registered during the recent years should not repeat,” contends Minister Stoynev. Meanwhile, he is satisfied with the agreement signed with Azerbaijan, according to which, the gas supplies from that country will increase threefold. Baku is also interested in the development of the Bulgarian gas network, because only 3% of the Bulgarian households are gasified. Moreover, the Bulgarian business has the opportunity to penetrate the market in Azerbaijan. It would encourage more companies to exit the grey economy, because tax evasion in this sector has reached EUR 6 billion over the past four years. Data of the Bulgarian Industrial Chamber show that grey economy grows by over 3% on an annual basis.

According to statistics, the minimum salary has increased by 61% over the past four years. However, Bulgarians do not draw as many big loans, as in the period of excessive money supply”. In 2013, three-quarters of the loans drawn by the Bulgarian households amounted to EUR 2500 or under. The fact that crisis has hit the middle class the most can not be contested. Meanwhile, the bank deposits of the Bulgarian households continued to increase and reached EUR 19 billion.

The National Revenue Office has also come up with interesting news- two women placed among the 25 wealthiest Bulgarians in 2013. They place 11^th and 15^th in the rankings of Bulgarians who registered incomes of over EUR 500,000. A 45-year-old businessman from the capital Sofia tops the ranking with incomes amounting to EUR 2 million. Meanwhile, rich foreign businessmen come to Bulgaria to do business. A Chinese billionaire is to buy the Saint Sofia golf club near the Bulgarian capital. This is the first major golf deal in Bulgaria. No one knows the financial parameters of that deal, but the Chinese billionaire intends to build a huge sports complex, because of the mineral water that springs in abundance in that region.

Business with second-hand cars again took a bit of fresh air. Deals with such automobiles have gone up and Bulgaria became the Mecca for this type of business in the Balkans. Buyers from Serbia, Macedonia, Albania and the former Soviet states come to Bulgaria to buy used cars. Macedonians, who pay an average of EUR 2,500 for a second-hand vehicle, are the most active buyers on the market. Greeks prefer small engine cars and the citizens of the former Soviet states are fans of automobiles with big engines. Moldovan nationals also show interest in second hand cars.

As a result of the war between the retail chains and the authorities, the controlling bodies have decided to rely on the experience of the Western European countries and send undercover inspectors to these retail chains. They will act as clients, in order to monitor the work quality in a certain retail company. The secret inspectors will look for expired items or ones of unknown origin. They will be also after labels written on foreign languages only.

The National Electric Company has again become a subject of heavy criticism. This time it was criticized by the Standard & Poor’s international rating agency which reduced its credit rating due to incurred debts. The perspective of the state-owned energy company remained negative due to debts amounting to EUR 1.3 billion.

Good news came from the investors and the airlines. The Bulgarian market of air services marked a 4% increase in 2013 and the biggest airports in Sofia, Varna and Buras, which offer international air charter services, have served nearly 7 million passengers, which equals to the whole population of Bulgaria. Recently it became clear that some of the largest Germans companies are ready to invest in different spheres in that country.  Strongest interest is shown in Bulgaria’s ports and mineral resources.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov