Economy

Ivo Kolarov "It is impossible to understand the history of economic thought if we do not pay attention to the fact that economics as such is a challenge to the conceit of those in power. An economist can never be a favorite of autocrats and demagogues. For them, he always remains a troublemaker, and the more convinced they are...

Five years after the start of the debt crisis in Europe, which was triggered by the global financial crisis, which later turned into an economic one, Greece is once again at the center of debates about the future of the European Monetary Union. Unlike in 2010-2012, however, the main attention is now paid to Greece, due to the fact that the other …

Frank Shostak In his article “The Big Meh,” Paul Krugman laments that despite all the advances in information technology, its effect on economic growth has so far been negligible. He writes: “The entire digital era, now more than four decades old, seems like a disappointment. New technologies have led to great discoveries, but …

Over the past few years, many governments around the world, along with central and private banks, have been gradually trying to minimize or completely eliminate cash payments. The idea is to make all types of transfers and commercial transactions via banking and/or digital channels as soon as possible. In order to …

In the context of the Greek crisis that has been developing over the past few months, one of the key issues is the strict budgetary requirements that the creditors want Athens to comply with. Important for the debate has been the size of Greece's primary budget surplus (i.e. the budget surplus before interest is charged) that would allow it to …

Due to their nature, payday loans are often the subject of public discontent and a good area for intervention by politicians who aim to protect customers. In this article, we will compare the existing regulatory control over this part of consumer finance in the UK and Bulgaria and examine the effects …

Recently, the media reported that "the cabinet is analyzing the possibility of introducing a system for buying back plastic bottles in Bulgaria." This is practically the same as with beer bottles - we pay about 0.20 leva more for each plastic bottle and get our money back, but only if we return it. It wouldn't be...

On June 16, after long debates, the Parliament adopted on second reading some of the amendments to the Health Insurance Act proposed by Minister Moskov. The main points of the amendment are as follows: NHIF will divide the health packages into two - basic and additional, with the basic one including socially significant serious diseases for which …

Last Monday it became clear that the Ministry of Health (MOH) has serious intentions to strengthen control over "public health" by introducing sanctions for not going for preventive check-ups: higher health contributions for "offenders". A week before that, Minister Dr. Moskov said that he wants to impose a 10% excise tax on harmful foods and ...

Lawrence Reid The decade after 1750 saw a huge economic shift in Britain. It was the era of the Industrial Revolution, marked by a colossal number of technical innovations, a huge increase in productivity, a renaissance of world trade, and a rapid increase in urban population. Historians and other analysts have struggled to interpret …