Brussels Thumbs Up Cheers Euro Hopeful Bulgaria

by Sofia News Agency www.novinite.com

The European Commission assessment of Bulgaria's three- year fiscal plan is one of the few positive, which boosts the country's chances of joining the eurozone waiting-room ERM II, insiders from Brussels have commented. The news comes shortly after Brussels placed Bulgaria in the brackets of low-risk counties with regard to public finances. According to the report for long-term financial stability, published by the institution at the end of last year, this category blankets only Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland and Sweden. The European Commission examined on Wednesday the updated stability and convergence programs (SCPs) of fourteen EU member states, including Bulgaria. �Given the need to ensure sustainable convergence, Bulgaria is invited to continue pursuing strict fiscal policies as well as to implement the planned structural reforms,� the commission said in its assessment of the country�s three- year fiscal plan. "After reaching a deficit of 1,9% of GDP in 2009, the general government budget is projected to be balanced in 2010 and to stabilize at a surplus of 0,1% of GDP in 2011-2012. The overall fiscal stance appears restrictive in 2010, broadly neutral in 2011, and provides for some fiscal relaxation in 2012," the Commission said in its assessment. According to the Commission the undertaken consolidation measures and the strong political commitment to fiscal discipline are expected to partially compensate the risks stemming from the slightly favourable assumptions on growth and revenue collection. Bulgaria's conservative government has based its 2010 budget on a 2% fall of the gross domestic product, though it revised its expectations upwards by 0,3% in late January. The growth is expected to be due to a recovery of the Bulgarian economy in the second half of the year. The country's gross domestic product fell by 5% in 2009, ending a three-year growth pattern. The government plans to sell the remaining minority stakes it owns in 55 former state-owned companies on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange and cut social benefits for public employees and pensioners in an effort to boost revenue. The International Monetary Fund projected at the beginning of March that Bulgaria�s budget deficit will stand at 1,8% of gross domestic product this year, which totals nearly BGN 1,2 B. The Washington-based global lender forecast 2010 inflation at 2,2%, economic growth at 0,2%, and the current-account gap at 5,5%.

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