Only a week after the draft national budget for 2009 was approved it needs to be amended to take into account the impacts of the global financial and economic crisis which start to be felt more pronouncedly in Bulgaria, experts of the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

The worsening projections necessitate a further reduction of the economic growth in 2009 from 4.7 per cent to 2 per cent in the most pessimistic scenario. This in turn will reduce revenues by 2,000 million leva and thus cut spending projections.

The changes in the budget are to be discussed at a meeting of the leaders of the ruling three-party coalition on December 1.

Finance Minister Plamen Oresharski is to ask the leaders to strengthen the buffers in the budget in order to avert drastic shocks for the Bulgarian financial and economic structures as a result of the crisis.

The participants in a meeting Thursday between Labour and Social Policy Minister Emilia Maslarova and employers' organizations voiced concerns about greater than expected increase in unemployment.

The standard time for moving draft amendments to the budget for 2009 between the first and second reading debate was increased by ten days following the opposition's disagreement with what it said was an optimistic budget.

Source: BTA