Existing stock
In H2 2009 was witnessed a reduction of the issued permits for retail projects, due to market uncertainty, worsened retail market conditions and most of all due to
reduced debt financing. Currently retail operators are more favoured than developers in terms of project financing, due to the perceived low risk.

Existing stock
Total stock
Very few projects continue to be developed; and that is a much slower pace. For the whole first semester of 2009, 76,000 sq m residential space was commissioned, as opposed to more than 250,000 for the whole 2008. This brings down the construction activity to the 2004 levels, while the issuance of new building permits is at an even lower level.

Existing stock
Total stock in Sofia reached 1,200,000 sq m, with 180,000 sq m additions in the 2009. The new office space to be delivered on the market for the first semester in 2010 is estimated to be about 160,000 sq m (all time record high for the market). On the development side, the construction of European Trade Center (ETC) was completed.

Existing stock
The total stock of contemporary logistics and industrial space in the four major cities of Bulgaria (Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas) is estimated at approximately
3,000,000 sq m. The number includes new-built and refurbished owner occupied and speculative premises of industrial use. Sofia accounts for about 50% of the share.

Bulgaria's drivers are required to have their lights on during the day as well for the duration of the winter months as of November 1.

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
Brussels, 22.7.2009

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION
TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL

On Progress in Bulgaria under the Co-operation and Verification Mechanism

This year Greece’s chances for a good score in Eurovision are very high, given that Rouvas’ first Eurovision outing in 2004, with the song “Shake It,” brought the country a third-place finish and gave Rouvas international fame.

The world's most ambitious online library was launched on Tuesday by Unesco at the agency's headquarters in Paris, giving unlimited access to some of the rarest and most protected cultural texts in existence.

With contributions from libraries worldwide, the website www.wdl.org features scanned versions of texts, maps, and manuscripts going back ten thousand years.