불가리아 주요경제뉴스 (4 - 11 November 2011)

BULGARIAN ECONOMIC TOP NEWS DIGEST

WEEKLY REPORT (4 - 11 November 2011)

 

Sections/headline briefs:

 

 

MACROECONOMY:

Industrial production growth in Bulgaria slows further to 1.6% y/y in Sep 2011  

Bulgaria’s retail sales drop 3% y/y in Sep 2011  

Construction output in Bulgaria drops by 10.5% y/y in Sep 2011 

BDZ workers to go on strike over planned lay-offs - report

 

 

INVESTMENTS:

 

 

COMPANIES AND INDUSTRIES:

Peugeot Sales/Service Center Opens in Bulgaria's Pazardzhik

Installed solar capacity in Bulgaria may reach 100 MW by year-end

Bulgaria PC Market Slump Continues in Q3, Laptop Sales Down 22.7% - IDC

Lidl Bulgaria To Open Two New Stores by End-2011

Bulgaria's Jan-Oct New Car Sales Rise 21.5% - Eurohold

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Articles:

 

MACROECONOMY:

Industrial production growth in Bulgaria slows further to 1.6% y/y in Sep 2011

The industrial production index increased by real 1.6% y/y in September slowing further from 2.5% y/y in August, according to preliminary data of the statistical institute. The growth of the extraction and the manufacturing industries decelerated to 8.05% y/y and 2.8% y/y, respectively from 8.2% y/y and 3% y/y in August. The decline of the utilities sector deepened to 5.2% y/y in September from 0.4% y/y a month earlier. Non-metal extraction, food products, textiles, printing activities drugs manufacturing rubber and metal manufacturing, production of electric appliances, and car parts production were among the branches with significant negative contribution. The number of branches, which posted annual growths in September, was 15 (out of 27) as compared to 18 in August and 21 in July. In seasonally-adjusted terms, the industrial production added 1% m/m as compared to 2% m/m drop in August and working-day-adjusted data showed an increase of 1.5% y/y, both improving as compared to relevant August data. The industrial turnover index increased by nominal 11.7% y/y as exports and domestic turnover went up by 14.2% y/y and 10.2% y/y, respectively. 

 

Bulgaria’s retail sales drop 3% y/y in Sep 2011

Retail sales declined by real 3% y/y in September and the contraction, which sustained for a fourth consecutive month, sped from 2.7% y/y a month earlier, according to data of the statistical office. All sub-branches registered lower volumes as compared to a year earlier with the exception of motor fuels and drugs sales. The sales of furniture and home appliances as well as clothes and shoes sales were the worst affected dropping by 11.2% y/y and 8% y/y, respectively. The wholesales trade fell by 2.4% y/y in September, narrowing from 4.3% y/y a month earlier. The volume of trade and repairs of motor vehicles continued expanding fast by 18.6% y/y but decelerated from more than 22% y/y in the previous two months. As a whole, the trade growth slowed to 1.4% y/y in September from 2.5% y/y in August. 

 

 

Construction output in Bulgaria drops by 10.5% y/y in Sep 2011

Construction output declined by 10.5% y/y in September, according to preliminary data of the statistical office. The contraction sped from revised 8.2% y/y in August. The construction of buildings dropped by 6.1% y/y as compared to 4.3% y/y in August. Civil engineering works went down by 16.6% y/y in September accelerating from 13.3% y/y in August. In seasonally adjusted terms, total construction output went down by 0.7% m/m while working-days-adjusted data showed an 11.6% y/y contraction. 

 

BDZ workers to go on strike over planned lay-offs - report

Employees of Bulgarian state railways BDZ will go on nation-wide strike to protest against the planned massive lay-offs at the company, mass-circulation daily Trud said on November 6 2011. According to the paper, trade unions were discussing the exact date for the strike.
The decision for the walk-out, expected to be announced on November 7, will disrupt all train services in Bulgaria between 8am and 4pm on the day chosen for the strike.
On November 4, BDZ's management said it would lay off about 2000 workers, increase ticket prices by about 15 per cent and reduce the number of trains on almost all routes. The announcement ended weeks of silence about measures to accelerate reforms in the railway sector.
On March 10, BDZ employees held a strike that affected all train services for an hour. The move prompted emergency talks between management and trade unions, who eventually agreed to downsize the company's staff, assuring, however, that the job cuts will take place only through retirement or natural attrition.

 

INVESTMENTS:

 

 

COMPANIES AND INDUSTRIES:

 

Peugeot Sales/Service Center Opens in Bulgaria's Pazardzhik

A Peugeot sales and service center worth 2.0 million levs ($1.41 million/1.02 million euro) has opened in Pazardzhik, in southern Bulgaria, the auto brand's local official importer, Sofia France Auto, said on Monday. The investor in the project is Real VD, a Sofia France Auto commercial intermediary, the auto importer told SeeNews in an email. The center has a staff of 25 and a built-up area of 1,970 square metres.

 

 

Installed solar capacity in Bulgaria may reach 100 MW by year-end

The installed photovoltaic electricity production capacities may reach 100 MW by the end of the year, according to preliminary data unveiled by the chairperson of the Bulgarian photovoltaic association Nikola Gazdov and quoted by investor.bg. The capacity of the installed solar panes was reported at 20 MW as of the end of 2010. Gazdov noted that the investors in renewable energy installations need simplified conditions to run their projects more than they need preferential prices to sell the produced energy. 

 

Bulgaria PC Market Slump Continues in Q3, Laptop Sales Down 22.7% - IDC

Sales of personal computers in Bulgaria continued to decline in the third quarter of 2011, posting an annual drop of 15%, market research firm IDC said on Wednesday. Muted demand on both the corporate and household side pushed the local PC market to a two-year low in the third quarter, IDC said in a press release. Bulgaria's PC market is on track to notch up its worst year since the start of the financial crisis, IDC Bulgaria senior analyst Evelin Stoev said in the press release. During the last three months of the year - which is usually the strongest quarter for PC sales, as well as in early 2012, the global shortage of hard-disks will exert additional pressure on the Bulgarian market, he added. The laptop segment contracted by an annual 22.7% in the third quarter, dragged down mainly by lackluster sales at electronics stores, lack of major public procurement deals and slack demand from the mobile operators, IDC said. Notebooks accounted for 70% of Bulgaria's PC market over the review period. IDC expects the top laptop vendors to further raise their market share going forward. The segment is currently dominated by Acer, Dell and HP which collectively account for half of local laptop sales. IDC said media tablets are currently having no significant impact on the portable PC segment in Bulgaria but as prices come down the situation will change. Sales of desktop PCs rose 11.7% on the year in the three months through September, buoyed by several public procurement deals.

 

Lidl Bulgaria To Open Two New Stores by End-2011

Lidl Bulgaria said on Wednesday it plans to open two new stores by the end of 2011. The two launches are planned for Sofia and Yambol, the hard discounter said in a press release. The company also plans to increase in 2012 the penetration of its store network in Sofia, Stara Zagora, Shumen, Dobrich, Peshtera and Ruse as it aims for a firm spot among the country's top three retailers in terms of market share. Lidl entered the Bulgarian market a year ago and has since launched 52 stores in 36 cities.

 

Bulgaria's Jan-Oct New Car Sales Rise 21.5% - Eurohold

Bulgarian car dealers sold 17,940 new passenger cars through October, up by 21.5% from a year earlier, holding company Eurohold Bulgaria, said on Wednesday. Eurohold Bulgaria is the parent company of local car dealer Auto Union. In October alone, a total of 1,957 new passenger cars were sold on the Bulgarian market, up by 24.1% from the same period last year, the holding company said in a statement filed to the Bulgarian Stock Exchange.

 

 

Reported by:

Georgi Iliev

KOTRA Sofia

Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency

Commercial Section of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea