From: bliznako@envmsa.eas.asu.edu (Bliznakov, Plamen)
Subject: RE: MILK PRISE
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1  
Organization: Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 21:56:00 GMT

In article <92351.184303ANTHC@CUNYVM.BITNET>, <ANTHC@CUNYVM.BITNET> writes...
> 
>IF SOMEONE WANTS TO BUY WEST CURRENCY IN BULGARIA MEETS A BRICK WALL.
> 
>YOU MIGHT HAVE BILLIONS OF BULGARIAN LEVAS, BUT ALL WILL BE IN VAIN IF YOU
> 
>WANT TO EXCANGE THEM AND TO TAKE THE MONEY OUT.  ONLY THE COMMUNISTS ARE
> 
>ALLOWED TO TAKE CURRENCY OUT.
> 

I ignore any mistakes in spelling. However, I don't agree that "only
communists are allowed to take currency out". On the contrary, anybody
can buy officially, as far as I remember, BGL 10,000 per year in hard 
currency (which currently is about $ 400). In practice, as some netters 
mentioned, the private exchange offices are willing to sell any amount. 
Besides, any Bulgarian citizen can buy hard currency needed for education
or medical treatment abroad. In addition, companies (including private
companies) can get hard currency needed for specific purchases from
abroad. So it's not that bad to have "billions of Bulgarian levas". 
Unfortunately, I don't have them and don't personally know anybody having 
such an amount.

It's amazing to me, however, how the Bulgarian central bank managed to keep
the exchange rate stable for a year, while there was huge inflation (about
100 % ??? for 1992 ) in the country. They must be pretty good !

>BULGARIA.  THE WESTERN INVESTORS WANT TO BE AT LIBERTY TO QUIT THEIR INVOLVMENT
>AT ANY INSTANCE AND TO MOVE TO A BETTER MARKET IF SUCH ACCURS.
>TO GIVE THE BULGARIAN ECONOMY A PUSH THE GOVERNMENT HAVE TO DO WITHOUT DELAY

As far as I remember, foreign investors can get their profit out of
the country according to the Law for foreign investments. However, this
law concerns investments of $ 50,000 and above.

> 1. TO EXCHANGE IMMEDIATELY THE PRINTED IN LENINGRAD (USSR) BILLS WITH NEW
> 
>    BILLS PRINTED IN COUNTRY WITH GOOD REPUTATION LIKE ENGLAND, FRANCE, GERMANY
>    OR THE USA.  THE EXPENSE WILL BE ONLY $80 MILLIONS, BUT IT WILL GIVE

$ 80 millions ! That's BGL 2 billions ! That's how much is needed to pay
on retirement plans for a month or two to feed Bulgarian old people. I
don't think Bulgarian government can afford this right now. And $ 80 mln.
is about the amount of loans Bulgarian government gets from international
institutions now. 

Besides, 100-leva banknotes (with Zahari Zograf on them) are being printed
in Germany. I guess the same is going to happen (happened) with 200-leva
banknotes.

> 
>    I READ EVEN
> 
>    SOMEWHERE THAT THE IMF AND THE IB ARE WILLING TO WAIVE THE EXPENCES
> 
>    OFF THE BULGARIAN DEBT.  

I read for the first time that IMF and IB can waive part of the Bulgarian
foreign debt (it's not their money !). Of course, they are pretty influential.

Besides, bankers, whom Bulgaria really owes money seem not to be very
interested in ideology (communists vs. anti-communists). They used to be
very cooperative with communist governments offering huge loans, until
these governments were paying the debt regularly. And they seem not to
be that cooperative now with "the first non-communist government of
Bulgaria in 45 years" which is not able to pay.

> 
> 2.  THE BULGARIAN GOVERNMENT TO GARANTEE THE FOREIGN INVESTMENTS AND TO
> 
>     WAVE THE TAXES OF THE MAJOR FOREIGN INVESTORS FOR AT LEAST 10 YEARS
> 

Why waive taxes for foreign companies, but not for Bulgarian ? Is it
because all foreign investments are "clean" and all Bulgarian capitalists
are "dirty" (communists according to you) ? I am not sure that everybody
investing now in Bulgaria is "clean". 

I think most of the foreign investors care more about the unstable
polytical situation on the Balkans. I read a lot of articles that Serbia
is about to start acting against Albanians from Kosovo, which later
will involve (Republic of) Macedonia, Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey into
the war. How would one invest his/her money into such a region ?!
Besides, the polytical situation in Bulgaria is not stable yet with
everybody on the polytical scene struggling against everybody.
In addition, there is not yet a stable law basis for making business in
Bulgaria. And finally, Bulgaria is not such a huge market as Russia to
make more companies take the risk.

>     INCOM FOR THE STATE WILL COME FROM THE INCOM TAX ON THE PAY CHECKS.

Mr. Kostov, the acting minister of finance, will get a hard attack if he
reads such a "proposal". There is a budget deficit even with the companies
taxed.

Plamen Bliznakov
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"Problems can not be solved at the same level of consciousness
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                      - Albert Einstein
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Newsgroups: soc.culture.bulgaria