Issue 3, 2012

The paper presents the problems of increasing end energy consumption, especially in industry and life, energy and carbon intensity of the economy, energy dependency, etc. It analyzes the innovations as an important factor for increasing the energy certainty, energy efficiency and competitiveness of the economy and its sustainable development. In this connection, the paper presents contemporary innovation solutions, like virtual gas-main, smart grid, supernetworks and supercables, cogeneration, distant reporting of consumed energy, renewable energy sources, including bio fuels, energy from roads, hybrid electric power stations, energy from ocean high and low tides, energy islands, concentrators for generating solar energy, etc. The contemporary innovation solutions are connected with the necessity of huge investments, which are big problem for Bulgaria. Nevertheless, the government policy should be widely open for innovations for improving the energy status of the country and increasing the green energy production. For this purpose all possible funds should be used completely.
JEL: P28; Q42; Q48

The paper discusses problems of the competitiveness of the transport market. It states that each type of transport has an effective area, where it is most competitive compared with the other types of transport. It also discusses to what extent each type of transport is competitive in transporting cargos and passengers.
The paper focuses on the competition and competitiveness of the railway and automobile transport, as well as the sea and river transport in the supply of transport services.
The articles outlines that the problems of the competitiveness of the transport concern the state and development of the technical infrastructure in the railway transport, ports, airports, with the participation of private capitals in the modernization of the infrastructure and the development of the innovations and innovation policy in the transport system.
JEL: R41

The paper presents the results of an empirical sociological study “Ecological Culture of the Bulgarian Agricultural Producer”, carried out on the territory of Blagoevgrad region in 2010. The results are representative for the agricultural producers from the region, characterized with small-land production. The high ecological culture of the respondents and their attitudes for future economic activity, registered by the empirical sociological study (ESS), are a serious potential for effective adoption of the new budget and reference frame of CAP in force since 1st January 2014. The ESS results show that in this region there is a stable consistence between natural resources, pro-ecological practices and agricultural activity. This is a significant condition for a successful application of the new CAP – more effective policy for more competitive and sustainable agriculture and active rural regions. This goal can be achieved through innovations, knowledge transfer, cooperation in the food chain, effective use of resources, maintaining the ecological balance, the landscape, for ensuring food certainty and quality achieved by ecological payments on the so-called “green measures”. In the new CAP (2014-2020) one third of the expenditures for developing rural regions are foreseen for ecological payments. The results of the carried out ESS show very good knowledge of the ecological code of CAP, a future main requirement to the agricultural producers. The new agricultural policy is an answer to the challenges to the agriculture – economic, ecological and territorial. The potential of the human factor for realizing the new CAP, registered by the carried out ESS, is high and is a guarantee for a successful overcoming of the conflict points between the economic activity of the agricultural producers and the environment. It is a significant advantage for the sustainable development of the region in economic, social and ecological aspect.
JEL: А14; О13; Q15; Q57; R11; Z13

After the accession of Bulgaria in EU, the Bulgarian market becomes part of the common European market. The internationalization of the enterprises, the development of competitive productions, the strategic orientation towards international markets, have decisive role for the future development of the economy. Very soon (historically it can be called immediately) after the Bulgarian accession in EU, a financial and economic crisis occurs, strongly reflecting on the Bulgarian economy and the conditions for developing the Bulgarian enterprises.
Besides the problems of catching up development, the Bulgarian economy faces also the need of the industries and enterprises to continue their development, to maintain their market specifics, and sometimes even to manage to survive under the new conditions.
The objective of the current study is to reveal the strength and direction of impact of the crisis and its influence in microeconomic plan on the firm strategy and competitiveness.
The destabilization of the economy’s microeconomic structure is a dangerous threat to the state of the whole economy. Destabilization of the microeconomic system of the Bulgarian economy is recognized in the strong worsening of the state of the organizations, changes in the normal development of the live cycle of the industries, their structural and economic specifics. The drops and failures lead to disturbing the evolution and normal development of the sub-industries, production areas, particularly in the conditions of strong competitive supply on the European markets. Often restoring is impossible. The normal market presence and development of the whole production area is broken or delayed.
Maintaining a balanced branch structure and economically bearable inter-branch indicators is a significant factor for reducing the unfavorable impacts on the economic units and managing the crisis.
For the purposes of the analysis the paper uses three empirical studies, carried out by National Center for Studying Public Opinion, consisting of nationally significant primary information with comparable data.
JEL: М11; М20; М21

In the paper current issues relating to the application of ICT as organizational – managerial innovations in management practices of small businesses in the country are considered. Based on the analysis, the use of ICT for different purposes during the period 2007-2010 is reveals.
JEL: M21; O32

The paper discusses the contribution, role and innovation activity of SME for the economy of the country in a particular business sector – wood processing and furniture industry, with focus on the furniture sector. The authors use official statistical information of NSI concerning the innovative furniture enterprises, the tendencies drawn out from studies of a quota excerpt from furniture enterprises, as well as those from the activity of 16 enterprises labeled “tested Bulgarian furniture”.
JEL: 031; L73

The paper specifies the sustainability of a main element of the strategy and policy of developing each sector of the economy.
The transport sector has suffered big damages from the financial crisis and the recession in global scale, and this has significantly reflected on its sustainability. Many enterprises have bankrupted, the domestic and foreign trade, reduced the transports of passengers and cargos. This has reflected negatively on all enterprises and firms in the transport sector.
The modernization of the transport sector is of social and political significance. The development of the transport system, following the EU requirements, is a premise for supplying a competitive sustainable transport.
JEL: R41

The global economic crisis sets the idea of competitiveness and the ways of its achieving in the center of the economic debate. According to the comparative analyses and studies, Bulgaria is among the countries with lowest competitiveness in EU. At the same time the country is required to increase its innovation potential in accordance with the goals, priorities, policies and strategies of EU. The goal of this paper is to present the significance of the innovations among the other factors for increasing the competitiveness of the Bulgarian enterprises. This goal is achieved through systematization of the results for Bulgaria from the existing analyses and studies of the business environment, as well as through carrying out of additional separate study of the operations and strategies of the Bulgarian firms.  The factors, components, indexes and indicators, characterizing the innovations, are compared by degree of problems with the other elements of the environment and the firm operations and strategies. The approach of determining the degree of priority of the innovations among the other factors of the firm competitiveness is based on the assumption that the lower the evaluation is, compared with the other elements of the environment (respectively the activities of the enterprises), the more problematic the particular element is, and respectively it should be prioritized to a greater extent among the other elements in the national policy for improving the competitiveness of the Bulgarian enterprises. Among the main results of the study outlines the confirmation of the leading theoretical statements in the field of competitiveness, namely: at the stage of development of Bulgaria, and having in mind the phase of the economic cycle of the global and national economy, the innovations are significant but not main priority for improving the competitiveness of the Bulgarian firms in middle-term period.
JEL: H12; L1; M0; O3; Z18

The paper discusses the role of FDI and the financial support from European Structural Funds (ESF) for increasing the innovation potential of the Bulgarian economy. The first part studies the degree to which the FDI inflow in Bulgaria contributes to the development of the innovative branches and services. The second part analyzes the financial support of ESF for creating the infrastructure of socially and economically significant projects, which would increase the innovation ability of the Bulgarian economy. It is assumed that the renovation of the economic and social environment could attract new quality FDI. As sources of external financing, FDI and ESF support the development of economic and social activities, which allow increase of the innovation potential of the Bulgarian companies. The evolution of some new productions and services allows suggesting that the FDI increase encourages their development. The study outlines that in order to attract quality FDI and to increase the use of ESF financial support, Bulgaria should identify reasonable economic goals, improve management and effectiveness of the production and services. Investments in smart comparative advantages allow creating a solid fundament of the knowledge economy.
JEL: F21; F15

The main objective of the paper is to analyze the role of the Seventh Framework Programs of EU on scientific studies, technological development and demonstration activities (2007-2013) for the development of the innovations in Europe, for increasing the productivity of the enterprises and of their innovation and absorption capacity. For this purpose first the paper studies the contemporary negative trends in the development of the European economy under the influence of the global financial crisis and the current debt crisis in the Euro Zone, as well as the problems and challenges they set to the implementation of “Europe 2020” strategy. Second, the paper analyzes the Seventh Framework Programme and its contribution to the development of the innovations in the EU. Particularly significant is insuring financial support for the small and medium-sized business on the programme, the areas, schemes and mechanism they are done in practice, and their role for increasing the innovation capacity of the enterprises. The place of Bulgaria in this process is also a subject of study in the paper, considering the fact that on one hand, the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) are dominating part of the production in the country, and on the other hand, these enterprises need a significant increase of their potential for developing and introducing innovative decisions.
JEL: О32; О52

Financing the innovations is a substantial premise for their development and is in the basis of creating knowledge-based economy growth. The significance of the problems outlines in the global financial crisis, mostly concerning seeking for approaches, mechanisms and new (and/or alternative) forms of financing.
The paper focuses on the opportunities for risk and institutional financing of the innovations in Bulgaria as a necessary condition for generating “intelligent” growth. The study is of conceptual character and is conformed to the new regime of risk investments in the European Union (August 2012, EU), the priority direction in the current strategy Europe 2020, founding international principles for financing the innovations, etc.
JEL: G23; G24; O16

The paper studies the literature on financial innovations from point of view of the business. The recent financial indignation set out the question whether the innovative financial market instruments are long-term profitable enough. The issue however is not what is their quantity but what they are used for and whether on their purpose. The principle tasks to the experts today are first to filter the toxic from healthy attractive innovative market instruments, then to reach a symbiosis between financial and technological innovations, and last but not least to evaluate the influence of the specific types of financial innovations dominating in each stage of the technological cycle for optimal distribution of the resources in the economy and restoring the business.
JEL: G15; O31; M20

Trade credit is one of the traditional sources of firm financing, which keeps its significance in the modern conditions of development of the financial markets and innovations. It is a means of increasing the flexibility and adaptivity of the firms. Its significance as a financial and operative instrument for carrying out the enterprise activity additionally increases in crisis and lowering the access to institutional financing. As an alternative source of financial resource, the trade credit encourages the innovation activity of the enterprises. However, its impact could be opposite as well. The increase of intra-firm debts above certain sizes, particularly of the share of delayed and uncollectable debts becomes a factor, which moves the focus of the management attention from the opportunities of innovative development to insuring liquidity necessary for survival of the firm.
JEL: G32; G30; O31