It is achievable to keep to a deficit of 3 percent, Petar Ganev, senior researcher at the Institute for Market Economy has told BNR. "We don't have pitfalls in the budget that are insurmountable. With a strict position of the finance minister, this could be done," Ganev said and warned that VAT collection was extremely tense in the 2023 budget.

"Between the first and second reading of the budget, there are over 80 proposals for amendments from the opposition and those supporting the cabinet. There will be some changes. They will probably be in the direction of raising salaries in certain institutions and raising some social payments but the amount will not change the overall framework," the economist says. A deficit of 3% for the next budget in 2024 is on the verge of being possible, Ganev warned.