Alarming: Sharp Surge in Bulgaria’s External Deficits Signals Growing Financial Vulnerabilities
In April 2025, Bulgaria recorded a current account deficit of 724.9 million euros, marking the largest monthly shortfall since January 2022
Iraq’s central bank on Wednesday eased financial restrictions imposed on the Kurdistan region over its independence vote after receiving a pledge of cooperation from Kurdish banks, an Iraqi banking source said.
All but four Kurdish-owned banks were allowed to resume dollar and foreign currency transfers on Wednesday, the source told Reuters.
The central bank had informed the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Tuesday it would stop selling dollars to the four Kurdish banks, and would halt all foreign currency transfers to the autonomous region, banking and government sources told Reuters.
The measures were taken in retaliation for the Sept. 25 referendum, in which the region voted overwhelmingly for independence despite opposition from Baghdad and Iraq’s neighbors Iran and Turkey.
The measures aim to tighten the control of the central bank over the Kurdish banking industry.
The central bank will maintain its dollar sale ban for four banks pending a review of their cooperation, the banking source said.
“The dollar sale prohibition will be lifted if the central bank sees that the four banks are really cooperating in disclosing their financial transactions,” the source said.
The Shi‘ite Arab-led Iraqi government has rejected an offer by the Kurdish government to discuss independence. It has demanded that it cancel the referendum result or face continued sanctions, international isolation and possible military intervention.
Bulgaria has officially joined the eurozone and will adopt the euro as its national currency on January 1, 2026
Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has said that Russia’s war against Ukraine will only truly end with the death or resignation of Vladimir Putin
The European Parliament has given its approval for Bulgaria’s accession to the eurozone, marking a crucial milestone in the country’s integration into the common European currency area
At a meeting of the Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Ukraine’s top military officer, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, placed particular emphasis on regaining control over positions and territories in Russia’s Kursk and Belgorod oblasts
A recent survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in May-June 2025 reveals a growing pessimism among Ukrainians regarding their country’s future
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has nominated U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize
Borderless Bulgaria: How Schengen Benefits Are Transforming Trade and Logistics
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