site.btaFinance Ministry Ready to Issue Debt on International Markets

The Finance Ministry has arranged the issuance of debt on the international financial markets, but it is waiting for favourable conditions for Bulgaria, Finance Minister Assen Vassilev told the Budget and Finance Committee in Parliament on Thursday.

The banks have been selected, a prospectus has been prepared, but because of the war in Ukraine the access to these markets was blocked in the spring, and Croatia was the only country in the region that issued debt. At the beginning of June, the markets closed again because of reported increase in inflation rates, and now there are no countries issuing debt. Bulgaria is fully prepared to enter the international markets, the Minister said.

The fiscal reserve stands at BGN 8.340 billion, well over the minimum level of BGN 4 billion, Vassilev said.

The budget being prepared envisages a worst-case scenario, which is a little worse than the current situation, Vassilev said. It entails an interruption of oil supplies, a reduction in natural gas supplies of up to 50%, the closure of trade through the Bosphorus, a significant increase in the migrant wave by a total of 250,000 more people, inflation rising by another 4-5%, and a minimal GDP growth of 0.1-0.2%. The budget includes buffers against such a scenario, the Minister assured.

In his opinion, the budget goals are achievable, but the process will not be easy and will depend on several factors, especially against the backdrop of the unprecedented gas market environment in Europe over the last three months.