Institute for Market Economics

In a recent release of the Authoritarian Populism Index 2024, Bulgaria emerges as a focal point for understanding the intricate interplay of political ideologies shaping Europe's landscape. Published by Timbro and EPICENTER, the index, presented in Bulgarian by the Institute for Market Economics, offers a comprehensive analysis spanning decades of electoral dynamics.

In a comprehensive analysis conducted by Institute for Market Economics (IME) Senior Economist Adrian Nikolov, Bulgaria's labor market is forecasted to face a severe shortage of skilled workers, potentially reaching half a million individuals within the next three to five years.

The Institute for Market Economics (IME) presented its fifth annual initiative with a map showcasing average salaries by municipalities throughout the country in 2022. This map provides a valuable perspective on the country's economy, revealing how successful examples of development are not limited to major cities but are also observed in smaller industrial municipalities.

The pandemic melted 7 times the money that our compatriots abroad send to their relatives in Bulgaria. For the first 7 months of the year, they transferred only 98 million euros, according to BNB data. For comparison, in 2019 Bulgarians abroad sent home a record over 1 billion euros.

"The last National Assembly increased the monthly maternity benefits from 194 euro to 332 euro, and that is a populist move and does not stimulate the resolution of the demographic crisis," Zornitsa Slavova from the Institute for Market Economics said for the BNR.

Bulgaria ranks 36th among 165 countries and territories in Frasers's 2021 Economic Freedom of the World Annual Report, losing four positions from last year, said Tuesday the Institute for Market Economics (IME) which is the local partner of Fraser Institute.
A year earlier Bulgaria was 32nd in the ranking.

Bulgaria's Tax Freedom Day in 2021 falls on May 20, the latest date in 10 years, said the Institute for Market Economics (IME). Theoretically, the average Bulgarians have worked for nearly 140 days to pay off their tax bill and start earning for themselves.

In an interview for BTA, Institute for Market Economics (IME) senior economist Petar Ganev forecasts that in a good-case scenario, if in the summer Bulgaria has made significant progress with the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, thus removing concerns over a new shutdown of the economy in autumn, the country's GDP could grow by some 3 per cent in 2021 and even by 4 to 5 per cent in 2022.

Over the span of ten years - from 2009 to 2019 - the population of Sofia has increased by almost 80,000, economist Adrian Nikolov from the Institute for Market Economics said during an online presentation of an analysis of the economic and social development of the regions in southern Bulgaria.  

In the last ten years the regions of Gabrovo, Montana, Pleven, Lovech and Vratsa have lost almost a fifth of their population. Only Varna reports an increase in the number of people living there, but the growth is insignificant and is rather explained by the preservation of parity and keeping the human resource.