site.btaMedia Review: November 18

HEADLINES

Citing Eurostat and National Statistical Institute data, Trud reports that "Bulgaria ranks first in the euro area for inflation." Annual inflation in Bulgaria reached 5.3% at the end of October, compared to an average of 2.1% across euro area countries, the daily notes.

Duma leads with the headline "Kyustendil and Vidin Rank at the Bottom in Terms of Wages." The daily cites the European Commission’s (EC) Autumn 2025 Economic Forecast, which shows that Bulgaria’s economic growth is expected to slow in 2026 and 2027. Pay disparities between regions continue to widen, with the highest wages in Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, and Gabrovo. Northwestern and northeastern Bulgaria remain the least developed regions, the daily adds. 

On its front page, 24 Chasa features a wrap-up of the 15th edition of the Doctors We Trust initiative, held Monday in Sofia. Organized by the media platform, the event brought together more than 500 doctors, institutional representatives, academics, and partners. The daily highlights remarks by Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov, Health Minister Silvi Kirilov, and Parliamentary Committee on Health Chair Kostadin Angelov, among others.

Telegraph’s top story focuses on the country’s readiness ahead of the winter season.

All dailies report that Rumen Spetsov has officially taken over Lukoil’s operations in Bulgaria. As 24 Chasa writes, he has been registered as the special commercial administrator of Lukoil Neftochim Burgas, Lukoil-Bulgaria EOOD, Lukoil Aviation Bulgaria EOOD, and Lukoil Bulgaria Bunker. 

ECONOMY

Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) reports that the 2026 budget bill is scheduled to be discussed at first reading in several parliamentary committees, including the Committee on Budget and Finance. The Government is proposing the largest-ever budget for the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) - over EUR 5.5 billion, a 15% increase compared to this year.

Speaking on the radio, Arkadi Sharkov, a health economist from the Expert Club for Economics and Politics, said: "The budget is insufficient, but these are the circumstances. The State does not have the money." He noted that part of the financial constraints stem from Bulgaria’s euro area accession process, adding that the deficit and inflation must be kept under control. Sharkov predicted that the NHIF budget will likely need an early update because the current proposal only covers last year's deficits. "The increase for prevention and prophylaxis this year is relatively small," he added. "A 10% increase is planned for medicines and hospital care. In hospital care, that increase only matches the overspending by healthcare establishments this year," he said. Each year, the European Commission criticizes Bulgaria over high out-of-pocket payments for health care, the health economist noted. "We are paying about a third of healthcare costs out of pocket. It is becoming increasingly difficult for citizens to meet their healthcare needs," he said.

Commenting on the budget on Bulgarian National Television, former economy minister Prof. Rumen Gechev called it "a huge scam" and pointed to what he described as a major gap between revenues and expenditures. He said that the budget was submitted late, without public debate, and with "scandalous treatment" of trade unions, employers, and the public. "This is a budget meant simply to be presented before Brussels, Frankfurt, and the European Central Bank. This view is shared by the entire professional community," he added. 

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Speaking on Nova TV’s morning programme, Svetoslav Benchev, chair of the Bulgarian Petroleum and Gas Association, said that crude oil prices have been falling in recent days. "If the trend persists, fuel prices may stabilize," he added. Benchev said that the main factor affecting prices at the moment are the markets for refined products - petrol and diesel. Recent events linked to sanctions in Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania have pushed up refined fuel prices in the region. "The oil market always prices in political and geopolitical risks, supply issues," he noted. Asked whether Rumen Spetsov will succeed in his role as special administrator for Lukoil's assets in Bulgaria, Benchev said that "the matter is entirely political." He added that choosing someone with a background in customs or tax administration makes sense and that Spetsov understands both the wholesale and retail markets as well as the company’s internal processes.

On bTV’s morning programme, Dimitar Hadzhidimitrov, deputy chairperson of the Association of Bulgarian Fuel Traders, Manufacturers, Importers and Carriers, discussed the rise in petrol and diesel prices in Bulgaria. "At the moment, demand for diesel is higher across the region. Consumption is up and production capacity is insufficient. That is why diesel prices have increased the most," he said. Hadzhidimitrov described the decision to appoint a special administrator for Lukoil as positive for the country and for consumers. "The first thing he needs to do is to start overseeing the tenders for crude oil supplies. That is crucial to ensure that the oil imported is not Russian but comes from verified suppliers," he noted, adding that his association is not worried about fuel availability or supplies. In his words, exports should be allowed.

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Speaking on Nova TV’s morning programme, political analysts Petar Cholakov and Lyubomir Stefanov discussed the Lukoil situation. Stefanov said: "Decisions about Lukoil are not made in Bulgaria at all. We are talking about the refinery’s global business and we are talking billions. If it is true that the US is negotiating with Russia through Lukoil, they will not allow anyone to interfere locally in a way that could jeopardize the deal. In that context, the appointment of a special administrator and using that for ongoing political attacks on CC-DB [Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria] will not affect the refinery’s real ownership." Cholakov said that he worries that incompetent decisions might be made when a deal for the refinery is concluded.

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Telegraph writes that tips given by customers for satisfactory service in restaurants, hair salons, taxis, and similar services must be taxed. They must also be shown on the receipt without being subject to VAT. This transpires from a statement by the National Revenue Agency on the application of tax legislation, the daily adds. 

JUSTICE

Media outlets report that Varna Mayor Blagomir Kotsev and former Sofia deputy mayor Nikola Barbutov have been transferred from a detention facility to Sofia Central Prison.

24 Chasa quotes Kotsev's wife as saying in a social media post that Kotsev has been moved to the prison's reception block. She described the facility as "the most horrific place in Bulgaria for people deprived of liberty," adding that there was no heating or light and visits were severely restricted.

In an interview with BNR, Adela Katchaounova, lawyer and co-chair of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, said that conditions in the Sofia Central Prison reception block are dreadful. "The picture is truly gruesome," she noted, adding that this applies to all detainees who are moved from detention facilities to the prison once they acquire the status of a defendant in court. "What happened to Blagomir Kotsev is not an isolated case. The conditions are bad for all defendants," Katchaounova said. She noted that Justice Minister Georgi Georgiev presents European politicians with "a sugar-coated picture of the state of affairs in Bulgaria," referring to him telling the EU General Affairs Council that in nine months this country had made up three years of lag in the area of justice. "The mechanism for investigating the Prosecutor General is opaque and non-functional," she said. It is only natural there will be no accountability, because the ad hoc prosecutor is unable to investigate, she added. "This mechanism cannot work even with the best intentions on the part of the ad hoc prosecutor. They are entirely under the Prosecutor General’s control. There is no civilian oversight. We have no documents at all. They remain hidden with the ad hoc prosecutor," Katchaounova said. "The thing is, the Prosecutor General effectively has to investigate himself," she added. 

HEALTH

BNR runs an interview with Assoc. Prof. Ivan Ivanov from the National Reference Laboratory for Control and Monitoring of Antimicrobial Resistance at the National Centre of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, on the occasion of European Antibiotic Awareness Day (November 18). Bulgaria has managed to reduce antibiotic use thanks to the introduction of electronic prescriptions, but the problem of microbes that are resistant to treatment continues to grow. The multi-resistant strain Klebsiella pneumoniae is now present in almost all hospitals in the country, and many patients are discharged without knowing they are infected with the bacterium. "Media outlets reported several deaths in recent months caused by hospital-acquired infections. As far as I know, pre-trial proceedings are ongoing, so the situation is critical. This strain we are monitoring is already in almost all hospitals. The biggest problem is its spread in intensive care units and urology wards. Infection rates there are widespread," Ivanov added. Bulgaria still does not have a national strategy for combating antimicrobial resistance, even though, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the problem causes the deaths of more than 35,000 people in Europe every year. "One of the main problems is that the newest antibiotics, which are available in most European countries, are not available in Bulgaria - and unfortunately, they are the most effective against these multi-resistant or pan-resistant strains. The companies that produce them simply have not registered them here, or if they have, treatment is so expensive that practically no hospital can afford it, even if the patient is able to pay for it," he added.