GROWTH MARKS THE BEGINNING OF EARNINGS SEASON

Market Overview (18^th October – 25^th October)

The main Bulgarian index SOFIX decreased by 1.36% this week, down to 571.66 points. The broad index BGBX40 decreased by 0.85% to 133.20 points. BGREIT decreased this trading week to 158.40 points, down by 1.43%.

Corporate News                                                      

M+S Hydraulic AD (MSH) reports a 58% revenue growth to BGN 110 mln. for the first nine months of the year. On the other hand, for the same period, the company has improved its net margin from 12.5% to 13.2%. It expects to generate approximately BGN 13.1mln of revenue for October.

First Investment Bank (FIB) has released its individual financial statements. It reports a 34% net income growth YoY for the first 9 months of the year. The net interest income has increased by 8.6% YoY and the net income from fees and commissions has surged by 21%. Total net income from bank operations amounts to BGN 292 mln, compared to 257 mln last year. The after-tax income has also increased to BGN 51 mln from BGN 38 mln marking a 35% growth. In parallel, the assets and the customers’ deposits have expanded to BGN 11.2 mln from 10.8 mln and 9.373 mln from 9.1 mln, respectively.

Gradus AD (GR6) records a 17.5% growth up to BGN mln at the end of September. The net income increased at the same pace – to BGN 6.784 mln for the period compared to the last year. Similarly, the company reports a 16.7% growth from the dividend income and 17% in the interest income due to a change in the interest rate from 0.86% to 1.15%.

Economic News                                                       

The inflation Rate in Bulgaria increased to 4.8% in September from 3.7% in August of 2021. Inflation quickened mainly for Transport (16%), Housing and Utilities (5.9%) and Food & Non-alcoholic beverages (4.4%). Bulgaria recorded a Current Account surplus of 328.30 EUR Million in August of 2021

Active COVID-19 cases in Bulgaria are on an increasing trend with a 7-day MA of 4,244 cases. The active cases at the end of the week were 82,910. The total number of fully vaccinated people so far is 1,5 mln, which is 21.05% of the population in Bulgaria.

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