(Click on the infographic for a larger size) Data source: NSI Commentary The latest NSI data show a significant slowdown in the industrial sector growth in May, due mainly to weakness in the manufacturing industry and sales on the domestic market. The decline in energy production may be due to the more favorable …

All stock markets are performing well in June, with the S&P500 even hitting a new record. Government debt is also performing well, with gold prices seeing a very large increase. However, investors are wary because the previous two major corrections in stocks followed similar levels of growth. Analysts expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates...

As you probably understood from the news, all pensions were increased by 5.7% today, and the maximum pension ceiling was raised from 910 to 1200 leva. In itself, for some, this increase is certainly a cause for joy. But in reality, it should be a cause for reflection. Because the latest actions …

If you follow the local media, you've probably already heard about yet another scandalous loan granted by the Bulgarian Development Bank. This time, it's not about one of the big businesses connected to Delyan Peevski, but about another businessman with a dubious public reputation – Rumen Gaitanski, nicknamed "Vulka", known for his closeness to …

For over a year now, we at EKIP have been conducting a very interesting experiment. With the launch of the Virtual Pension Fund last year, we set ourselves the goal of illustrating what we mean when we talk about alternatives to the current pension system in Bulgaria. A system that, as you may know, we criticize extremely harshly. Because …

00:22 - Introduction to the topics in the episode and our special guest Stoyne Vassilev, financial consultant and founder of the personal finance web portal SmartMoney.bg 03:00 – News from Bulgaria 09:30 – What kind of investment project is "Historical Park"? Is it a financial fraud or just an example of colossal incompetence? 26:35 – …

In recent weeks, the most current political and economic topic in the country has been the numerous proposals to abolish VAT, which seem to be pouring in from absolutely all sides of the political spectrum in the Bulgarian parliament. After the initial proposal, which came from the DPS, alternative ideas for abolishing the value-added tax have also appeared in …

All equity markets performed quite poorly in May. Government bond yields improved significantly, which also improved the return on the "Permanent Portfolio". Central bankers in both the US and Europe are preparing to cut interest rates. The relatively good month of April for the markets was followed by an almost disastrous May. …

00:24 – Introduction to the topics in the episode and our special guest Anelia Angelova from Viara Insurance Broker, with whom we will talk about the insurance market 03:15 – Financial news from Bulgaria 16:40 – Macro and Markets 29:20 – Fintech and alternative investments 37:25 – Interview with Anelia …

A few days after the elections for the new composition of the European Parliament for the next five years, it is a good time to take stock – who won and who lost in these elections? In this article, I will focus on the results in the rest of Europe and specifically in key member states …