site.btaMedia Review: April 8

TARIFF WAR - OPINIONS

24 Chasa runs an interview with former finance minister Simeon Djankov. He offers his take on the current global tariff war. 

America wants to show that it sets the rules of trade globally. Whether this is so will be seen quickly - other major economies will respond to the new tariffs and then it will be clear who will hold on and for how long.

But there is definitely a move towards more domestic production, which is good for Bulgaria. We do not have large exports to the US, our main partners are in Europe. Local trade is also better for the environment - less transport is used. For Bulgaria, this trade war is rather a good development. We have access to the huge European market, which will now be closed to producers outside Europe. Our companies have a lot to gain from this.

The European economy is too cumbersome, especially in terms of innovation, and will go into recession after these tariffs. Eastern Europe is in a better position. We are used to dealing with all kinds of challenges in the transition years, whereas for Western Europe this is a big blow.

The world economy will become more local - production will move closer to consumers. This is generally a positive development, but there will be slower economic growth during the transition.

The new US trade policy aims to weaken the dollar in the short term, and therefore to be more competitive. If Europe fails to respond adequately, a weakening of the euro will follow in the next 3 to 5 years. There is no other currency to replace the US dollar. All other options have weaknesses. But we have to look at what is happening as a play. This is only a first act. Let's see what happens after the intermission, Djankov concludes.

*

Diplomat and Atlantic Club Vice President Elena Poptodorova told bTV that the goal of the US tariffs is the devaluation of the dollar and its withdrawal as the world's reserve currency, and that is now going to hit all of America very hard both in reputation and in economic opportunity and leverage. It is an American issue, but by no means does it remain confined there, Poptodorova said. 

*

There is a real danger that the Bulgarian market will be flooded with Chinese goods because of the US tariffs. This is what Vasil Velev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association (BICA), said on the air of Nova TV.

In his words, many enterprises in Bulgaria already feel the burden of the measures and have laid off their workers.

Velev is adamant that adequate action is needed, but he does not expect it from the current European Commission, so the resignation of its leadership should be demanded, the expert said.

According to him, given the current situation, the actions of President Trump are fully justified. "American industry is also going down. Its share has shrunk," Velev stressed. He showed data according to which US and EU production together is as much as that of China. "Sanctions on Russia are hurting the European Union. It is killing itself with them," Velev believes.

POLITICS

Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov is convening a meeting at the Council of Ministers to discuss measures to improve road safety, BNR and other media report. The meeting will be attended by representatives of relevant ministries and NGOs.

The meeting on road safety comes amid protests across the country following the death of 12-year-old Siyana. She was killed on March 31 in a crash near Telish after a truck rammed into the vehicle in which the child was travelling with her grandparents. After the incident, Zhelyazkov promised that the authorities will be uncompromising. 

The Interior Ministry is checking the condition of dangerous stretches of the road network across the country.

The Justice Ministry has prepared amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code, the Judicial System Act, and the Expert Witness Ordinance to counter delays in crash cases.

ECONOMY

The price of fresh potatoes in a major retail chain reached almost BGN 9 per kilo over the weekend, 24 Chasa reports. Compared to other varieties, which still cost between BGN 2 and BGN 4 per kilo, fresh ones are almost twice as expensive as last year and practically cost almost as much as a kilo of pork.

The trend in the wholesale price of fresh potatoes is the same - last year, at the end of March and the beginning of April, they cost on average BGN 2.89 per kg on the vegetable exchanges, while now they cost BGN 4.67. This increase of 62% in just 12 months is also the highest ever for all types of fruit and vegetables on the country's commodity exchanges and auctions.

A check by 24 Chasa in the markets in the capital showed that the high price is not an exception - fresh potatoes, albeit in small quantities, are offered everywhere for BGN 8-9 and even 10 a kilo.

BNT and bTV report that according to apricot and peach growers in Sliven region in the south-east, almost all the production this year will be ruined by the out-of-season cold spell, which brought not only snow but also freezing temperatures, which are fatal now that the trees have already blossomed and budded. Farmers expect the price of Bulgarian apricots this summer to reach about BGN 10 per kilo, mark-ups excluded.

*

In Varna, representatives of the restaurant and hotel business are organizing a rally-march and plan to close the restaurants for two hours in the afternoon, BNR reports.

According to the organizers of the protests, Bulgaria is the only EU country that develops tourism and does not have a reduced rate for the restaurant sector. They are demanding to keep the VAT rate for the tourism sector at 9%.

On Wednesday, a rally-concert will be held in front of the city hall in Veliko Tarnovo and local restaurants will close for three hours.

In the capital on Wednesday, protesters are expected to gather in Battenberg Square, and restaurants in Sofia will be closed from 2:30 to 7:30 pm.

*

Dnevnik reports that as of 2023 Bulgaria was the EU country with the highest share of the informal economy - 34.6% of the country's GDP, according to the latest survey by Visa together with the management consultancy Kearney.

In six sectors this share is over 50% of the added value. These are accommodation, restaurants (70%), agriculture (66%), entertainment (58%), construction (56%), wholesale and retail trade (53%).

The size of the grey economy in absolute value was highest in wholesale and retail trade - BGN 14.2 billion in 2023 and in manufacturing - BGN 13.6 billion. Together they account for 45% of the informal economy in this country.

Bulgaria is also the EU member state with the lowest number of digital payments.

BOC LEADERSHIP

Assoc. Prof. Margarita Zlatareva, former constitutional judge and judge of the Supreme Court, university lecturer and chairperson of the Arbitration Court at the Bulgarian Olympic Committee (BOC), explained to Trud what is happening in the organization.

Vesela Lecheva was elected chair of the BOC in place of Stefka Kostadinova, but litigation arose around the decisions of the general assembly of the organization.

Zlatareva commented that until the court ruling, the old leadership in the person of Kostadinova was active, as the Sofia City Court stopped the registration of the new leadership because of eight lawsuits filed.

She is adamant that the claim of Vesela Lecheva's team that the newly elected board members can act within the organization before the registration is not correct.

The outgoing head the BOC, Stefka Kostadinova, said that soon the competent court would rule on the merits of the claims challenging the decisions of the BOC General Assembly. She argued that the newly elected Executive Bureau is not validly constituted and cannot take legally binding decisions, much less those that would engage the legally registered representatives of the BOC.

The newly elected President, Vesela Lecheva, tried to visit the headquarters of the organization on Tuesday, but again failed to meet with Kostadinova. Lecheva has not yet been registered in the Commercial Register due to eight complaints filed against her election at last month's General Assembly. 

Kostadinova is currently on sick leave and Secretary General Belcho Goranov, who filed the first complaint against Lecheva's election, is on a business trip.

"I am not worried about these lawsuits. What bothers me is this - during the meeting there was not a single obstruction in terms of conducting the meeting, the vote. Coming out, two hours later, things had fundamentally changed. They even sealed off the building. It's all a trap for the purpose of legal cases and lawsuits. Every day we will come here at 9:30 until they let us in," Lecheva told BNT.

HEALTH

Medical authorities and prosecutors are investigating the death of a 6-year-old child who died after dental manipulation on Friday, BNR and other media report.

In Plovdiv, Health Minister Silvi Kirilov and the Medical Supervision agency are expected to check on the spot what exactly happened at the private clinic in the city where the dental manipulation of the deceased 6-year-old child was carried out.

The Regional Health Inspectorate-Plovdiv investigation into the case is ongoing.

The District Prosecutor's office in the city is investigating for medical malpractice, and has not yet requested documentation from the RHI.

Speaking to BNT, the director of RHI-Plovdiv, Dr. Argir Argirov, dismissed claims that it was a medical error or some kind of allergy.

The timeframe in which the appointed triple forensic medical examination should be released is at least two weeks.

The clinic claims that the manipulation was done according to standard. The child woke up after the 4-hour intervention under full anaesthesia in the presence of two anaesthetists, but 40 minutes later the child’s condition suddenly deteriorated.