Bulgaria

There are hardly many people who would not accept free consumption of goods or services. However, free should be in quotes, because someone always pays the price in some form. It does not have to be paid in money, it is possible that those who consume do not realize that they are paying, it is possible …

I dedicate this article to my friend Vladimir Karolev, with whom we have repeatedly discussed the concessioning of water, district heating, resorts, beaches and services. [i] “Bath” or “shower”: vital signs of the problem This question did not, for example, face the residents of Sofia in 1994 and early 1995. The reason is very simple …

It is increasingly clear that the conflict that led to the beginning of the current phase of the political cycle[1] is fading away, far from the focus of public attention. Removing Borisov is no longer a priority, and the coalition assembled for this purpose has disintegrated. The Borisov glue, as I have called it, is increasingly less relevant because of (i) its ritualistic …

A temporarily popular, unorthodox macro counter-indicator is the covers of famous economic publications. When the Economist or BusinessWeek announce on the front page that a certain major trend is beginning or ending – then we can expect exactly the opposite. For example, the aforementioned British publication said in 1999 that the world was “drowning in oil”, shortly before …

At the last minute, the parliament extended the program for compensation of the industry with the price of electricity. Although clumsily played by the Petkov government and with contradictory ideological and economic justification, the program was somewhat inevitable, due to the massive compensations distributed in Western Europe (Spain and France have ceilings below 50 euros), and …

In the context of the already numerous internal conflicts in the ruling coalition, which have been going on for months, another one has been brewing in recent weeks, this time regarding the possible introduction of the euro in Bulgaria from January 2024. At the beginning of the month, Finance Minister Assen Vassilev (from "We Continue the Change") tried to push for the introduction of ...

The dog in the title is the State Security (DS) – the secret services of Bulgaria during the communist regime (1944-1989). Their numerous functions also include monitoring various aspects of the country's economy. The preserved authentic documents with which the DS representatives informed the political leadership about the economy of Bulgaria are important and interesting. …

I dedicate this article to my friend Vladimir Karolev, with whom we have repeatedly discussed the concessioning of water, district heating, resorts, beaches and services. [i] After St. George’s Day, state television spread the news that the water supply companies were planning to raise the price of water. As the drafter and introducer of the modern (since 1991) law on the protection …

Prime Minister Kiril Petkov's proposal for individual donations to help Ukraine met with mostly negative reactions. The criticisms were varied, but an important discrepancy between the capabilities and needs of the Ukrainian economy stands out. The country's monthly budget deficit is expected to reach nearly $7 billion. If we compare it with the revenues of …

Bulgarian sociologists have discovered the political realignment[1]…at least in France. In Friday’s Panorama on April 15, Boryana Dimitrova (Alpha Research) practiced explaining how strange it is that the two largest parties in the country of baguettes are respectively globalists (Macron) and anti-globalists (Le Pen). She even dared to use the correct …