Bulgaria

A recent nationally representative survey by the "Trend" Research Center reveals that 61% of Bulgarians view the euro as a stable currency. Additionally, 42% of respondents express confidence in the stability of the European economy. The survey, commissioned by 24 Chasa, was conducted from October 16 to 22, 2024, and included 1,002 adult participants from across Bulgaria.

Acting Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev announced that a joint declaration regarding Bulgaria's accession to Schengen will be signed on Friday in Budapest. The declaration will be signed by the interior ministers of Bulgaria, Romania, and Austria.

Joana Kehlibarova has been officially appointed as the Honorary Consul of Australia to Bulgaria, marking a new chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria presented her with the Consular Exequatur on 18 November 2024, confirming her appointment.

Bulgaria's accession to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is a key national priority, according to Minister of Innovation and Growth Rosen Karadimov.

Thirty-five years have passed since the pivotal beginning of Bulgaria's transition from a one-party system to democracy and a market economy.

Over the next year, more than 17,000 Bulgarian companies are planning layoffs, marking a nearly 37% rise in firms forced to scale back and reduce staff. In 2023, 12,600 companies reported similar workforce reductions. This data comes from a study by the Employment Agency on labor market needs.

Labor supply in Bulgaria remains exceptionally constrained amid record-high demand, making it increasingly challenging to tap into the limited available workforce, according to recent Eurostat data analyzed by the Institute for Market Economy.

Acting Bulgarian Defense Minister Atanas Zapryanov has expressed support for the US President Donald Trump's goal of increasing defense spending for NATO member states to 2.4% of GDP, emphasizing that this target is both necessary and realistic.

The caretaker government of Bulgaria has approved an additional allocation of 20 million leva to the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense. This decision was announced by the government press service, with the stated purpose of supporting the two ministries amid "increased migration pressure" between June 1 and October 31.

Russian energy giant Lukoil has announced plans to sell its largest asset in the Balkans, the refinery in Burgas, Bulgaria, to a Qatari-British consortium by the end of the year, marking a significant shift in Moscow's influence over energy supplies in Southeastern Europe, as reported by the Financial Times.