Sat, Nov 07 2009
Carrefour's first outlet in Bulgaria was opened in the Bourgas Plaza shopping centre in March.
Photo: Georgi Kozhouharov
The European Trade Centre has five class A office buildings with a total area of 70 000 sq m. Colliers International is the consultant on the 70 million euro project
After Bourgas, Carrefour eyes Sofia next, but not before February 2010
Carrefour opens the first of four stores planned for Bulgaria in Bourgas Plaza, the city's first shopping mall, which is due to open for business in the first week of April
France's Carrefour, Europe's biggest retailer, has not given up on the planned rapid expansion in Bulgaria despite the global economic slump, sources close to the company said. The chain has inked a contract to open a 10 000 sq m outlet in Rousse's Grand Plaza shopping mall, which should be finished in 2010. Carrefour has been preparing for Bulgarian entry for a several years now, planning to debut in 2009 and build a 30-strong network of supermarkets and hypermarkets over the folowing five years.
Office rent transactions peaked at 65 000 sq m between July and September 2008, but collapsed to 10 700 sq m in Q3 2009, Forton manager Sergei Koinov said.
Most potential buyers are now opting to buy a luxury flat in the range of 120 000 to 150 000 euro or a single family home for about 500 000 euro.
About 30 000 to 35 000 people employed in the construction sector were facing redundancies in 2010, Bulgaria's Regional Development Minister Rossen Plevneliev said on October 26.
Average market prices of housing in Bulgaria dropped five per cent in July-September, measured quarter-on-quarter, the National Statistical Institute said on October 23 2009.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has released a 43.5 million euro loan to Sofia Municipality, for infrastructure projects worth 88.1 million euro in total