Bulgaria
CEE hotel deals put on hold amid coronavirus pandemic
After a vintage 2019, almost €2bn worth of deals were expected to close in the hotel sectors of six Central and Southeast European countries this year, but these are looking increasingly unlikely to complete, says a report from law firm CMS.
Capital Economics slashes CEE growth forecasts for 2020 to -2% y/y
Economic consultancy Capital Economics has slashed its growth forecast for the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) to a 2% y/y contractions from the previous 2.3% expansion in 2020, as a result of the coronavirus.
Coronavirus crisis to widen rich/poor gap within Central and Eastern Europe
Convergence to be reversed as the economic crisis resulting from the coronavirus pandemic is set to be deeper and longer in the CIS, Ukraine, Turkey and the Western Balkans than in the EU member states of Central and Southeast Europe.
THE MITTELEUROPEAN VIEW: Looking for LUV — what shape will Europe’s recovery from this existential crisis be?
There is a new acronym in the economists' lexicon: VUCA. It is short for “Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous” as pundits are struggling to explain a crisis that is coming at us from all sides simultaneously.
wiiw slashes 2020 growth forecast for CESEE to just 1.1%
Vienna-based think tank expects the coronavirus pandemic to result in the worst year for the region since the global financial crisis.
BALKAN BLOG: A poor solution to waste disposal
Scandals over illegal waste imports have erupted in the two poorest EU states, Bulgaria and Romania, as two years on from China’s ban on plastic waste imports, developed countries are still struggling to dispose of waste they cannot recycle at home.
Bulgarians stockpile groceries as government closes schools, shops and restaurants until March 29
The parliament voted to declare a state of emergency, giving the government extraordinary rights to partially limit people’s freedom in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus.
Bulgaria declares state of emergency over coronavirus until April 13
While efforts to limit the spread of coronavirus are seen as necessary, many people fear that the state of emergency could lead to a serious threat to democracy in Bulgaria.
CEE/CIS populations believe in gender equality in education but not in business or politics
More than 100 years since International Women’s Day was declared a national holiday in post-revolutionary Russia, a new survey from the UNDP reveals gender bias is still widespread across the region.
Environmental groups say Bulgarian coal power stations illegally burning waste
Lawyers and environmental NGOs say three plants are burning waste at amounts that are 10,000 times above those allowed by the EU.
Bulgaria tightens controls on border with Turkey
Sofia reinforced its borders after reports that hundreds of migrants were heading to Turkey's borders with Greece and Bulgaria.