Post by Bozur on Apr 10, 2005 0:48:27 GMT -5
Tourism receipts cut Bulgaria’s C/A deficit
SOFIA (Reuters) - Better-than-expected tourism receipts and income sent home from expatriate Bulgarians helped squeeze the Balkan state’s full-year 2004 current account gap to a narrower 7.5 percent of GDP, data showed yesterday. The EU aspirant’s current account shortfall shrank to 1.45 billion euros last year, down from a revised 1.63-billion-euro gap in 2003, when it reached a six-year high of 9.3 percent, the central bank said in a statement.
“The improved balance is mainly due to increased inflows from tourism,” central bank adviser Kalin Hristov told Reuters. “Bulgarians living abroad and sending money home have also countered the negative impact of the growing trade deficit.”
The external gap for December alone was 319 million euros, versus 281 million in the same month a year earlier. Analysts welcomed the news, but warned the deficit will likely bounce back to 8.0 percent this year.
“This is a clear improvement over 2003, but our forecast for 2005 is for slight weakening toward 8.0-8.2 percent because of expected weak exports in the textile sector, mostly in relation to Chinese competition,” said Agata Urbanska, a London-based economic analyst at ING Bank.
The government of Simeon Saxe-Coburg sees this year’s current account gap at 8.5 percent of GDP. The 12-month trade deficit, the most important part of the balance of payments, increased by almost a quarter over 2003 to 2.72 billion euros, or 14 percent of GDP.
The International Monetary Fund and the central bank say last year’s still-wide external imbalance is mainly due to imports, which have surged as more and more Bulgarians tap into cheap consumer loans and buy foreign-made goods.
Imports jumped by 20.8 percent for the whole year, while exports were up 19.9 percent. But greenfield investment and privatization revenues lifted Bulgaria’s FDI to a preliminary 1.96 billion euros, up from 1.6 billion in 2003, financing the entire current account gap. FDI is expected to continue to rise as Bulgaria’s low costs and EU accession attract investors.
www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=53546
SOFIA (Reuters) - Better-than-expected tourism receipts and income sent home from expatriate Bulgarians helped squeeze the Balkan state’s full-year 2004 current account gap to a narrower 7.5 percent of GDP, data showed yesterday. The EU aspirant’s current account shortfall shrank to 1.45 billion euros last year, down from a revised 1.63-billion-euro gap in 2003, when it reached a six-year high of 9.3 percent, the central bank said in a statement.
“The improved balance is mainly due to increased inflows from tourism,” central bank adviser Kalin Hristov told Reuters. “Bulgarians living abroad and sending money home have also countered the negative impact of the growing trade deficit.”
The external gap for December alone was 319 million euros, versus 281 million in the same month a year earlier. Analysts welcomed the news, but warned the deficit will likely bounce back to 8.0 percent this year.
“This is a clear improvement over 2003, but our forecast for 2005 is for slight weakening toward 8.0-8.2 percent because of expected weak exports in the textile sector, mostly in relation to Chinese competition,” said Agata Urbanska, a London-based economic analyst at ING Bank.
The government of Simeon Saxe-Coburg sees this year’s current account gap at 8.5 percent of GDP. The 12-month trade deficit, the most important part of the balance of payments, increased by almost a quarter over 2003 to 2.72 billion euros, or 14 percent of GDP.
The International Monetary Fund and the central bank say last year’s still-wide external imbalance is mainly due to imports, which have surged as more and more Bulgarians tap into cheap consumer loans and buy foreign-made goods.
Imports jumped by 20.8 percent for the whole year, while exports were up 19.9 percent. But greenfield investment and privatization revenues lifted Bulgaria’s FDI to a preliminary 1.96 billion euros, up from 1.6 billion in 2003, financing the entire current account gap. FDI is expected to continue to rise as Bulgaria’s low costs and EU accession attract investors.
www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=53546