site.btaGovernment Expects Economy to Continue Growing - Finance Minister

Based on the tax proceeds, the government expects the Bulgarian economy to continue growing, Finance Minister Assen Vassilev said during Question Time in the parliamentary budget and finance committee Tuesday. He thus dispelled claims that the national economy will contract this year due to the surging energy prices and other factors.

Vassilev said that the figures will be clearer several days from now when the National Statistical Institute is due to put out snap statistics.

He said that the optimism reflects several factors. "The post-pandemic recovery is nearly over. Bulgarian economies are quite competitive globally because the price of electricity in Bulgaria has stayed at the level of September - October 2021 while it spiked everywhere else. This is why we are seeing a growth in export, in industry and the services sector. Also, we did not lock down the economy even during the severe COVID wave of the first quarter. That made our companies reliable partners: they did not lock down and fulfilled their contracts," said Vassilev.