1 Credit Rating of Bulgaria Bulgaria has proven higher investment credibility June 2004 Standard&Poor’s gave an investment- grade foreign-currency rating BBВ BBВ (stable outlook) by Standard&Poor’s; BBВ BBВ (stable outlook) by Fitch IBCA; Bа1 Bа1 (stable outlook) by Moody’s; BBВ BBВ (positive outlook) by the Japan Credit Rating Agency

2 Estat Index for Bulgarian Business Climate

3 Economic Policy Priorities Increasing the competitiveness of Bulgarian economy through measures for improving the business environment; Increasing the competitiveness of Bulgarian economy through measures for improving the business environment; Support for investments and innovations by creating the requisite infrastructure; Support for investments and innovations by creating the requisite infrastructure; Reforms in the sphere of education and development of science as essential elements in building a knowledge-based economy. Reforms in the sphere of education and development of science as essential elements in building a knowledge-based economy.

4 Sources: BNB, InvestBulgaria Agency, Bank Austria Creditanstalt Economic Research, September 2004 Record FDI performer 2004 and ‘ sector drivers’ dynamics FDI as % of GDP, 2004E 10.1% (according to preliminary data) FDI sector shares, past three years % FDI stock by sector, 1998 – 2004 FDI per capita (EURO)

5 Key projects 2004  Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC) privatization was the investment ‘milestone’ to effect the whole telecom market

6 Prospective competitiveness outlook Average real wages (% change yoy)  For the next few years real wages in Bulgaria are expected to grow at some 2% on annual basis; real wages growth rate in Bulgaria will be similar to that in CEE countries  Alarming decline in educational performance in schools reduces competitiveness in perspective Average labor cost per hour, USD Source: Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study,TIMSS 2003, EIU

7 Bulgaria in global ‘rethinking’ of hi-tech leaders  MARCH 28, 2005: GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE TESTING PROGRAM ON A GLOBAL SCALE (BRAINBENCH) FINDS HIGH CONCENTRATION OF TECHNICAL SKILLS IN EASTERN EUROPE  Surprising results that challenge commonly-held views about concentrations of the world"s technical talent pools: Eastern European nations such as Romania, Latvia, Bulgaria, and Belarus lead Western countries such as the U.K., Australia, Germany, and France in total certifications. As a percentage of total population, Latvia, Estonia, and Bulgaria lead the world. "We"re used to hearing in the press about technology skills being outsourced and concentrated in Asia, primarily India but considering how relevant English is to things like programming languages, the strong results across nearly all of Eastern Europe are fascinating. Looking at the numbers makes you rethink some of the usual assumptions about the global workforce skills pool.” Mike Russiello, Brainbench’s President and Chief Executive Officer

8 Thank you! Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry 42, Parchevich Str., BG-1058 Sofia Bulgaria Tel.: (+359 2) Fax: (+359 2) Web: