Bulgaria Economy - 2024

Economic overview

upper-middle-income EU economy; improving living standards and very robust economic growth; coal-based infrastructure; legacy structural vulnerabilities and widespread corruption; increasing Russian economic relations, particularly through energy trade

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$174.307 billion (2022 est.)
$167.804 billion (2021 est.)
$155.902 billion (2020 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real GDP growth rate

7.63% (2021 est.)
-3.96% (2020 est.)
4.04% (2019 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$27,000 (2022 est.)
$24,400 (2021 est.)
$22,500 (2020 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

GDP (official exchange rate)

$68.49 billion (2019 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

3.3% (2021 est.)
1.67% (2020 est.)
3.1% (2019 est.)

Credit ratings

Fitch rating: BBB (2017)

Moody's rating: Baa1 (2020)

Standard & Poors rating: BBB (2019)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture: 4.3% (2017 est.)

industry: 28% (2017 est.)

services: 67.4% (2017 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use

household consumption: 61.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 16% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 19.2% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.7% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 66.3% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -64.8% (2017 est.)

Agricultural products

wheat, maize, sunflower seed, milk, barley, rapeseed, potatoes, grapes, tomatoes, watermelons

Industries

electricity, gas, water; food, beverages, tobacco; machinery and equipment, automotive parts, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel; outsourcing centers

Industrial production growth rate

1.72% (2021 est.)

Labor force

3.291 million (2021 est.)

note: number of employed persons

Unemployment rate

5.42% (2021 est.)
5.12% (2020 est.)
4.23% (2019 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

total: 14.2% (2021 est.)

male: 14.3%

female: 14%

Population below poverty line

23.8% (2019 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income

40.3 (2019 est.)

Average household expenditures

on food: 19.3% of household expenditures (2018 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco: 5% of household expenditures (2018 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.9%

highest 10%: 31.2% (2017)

Remittances

0.94% of GDP (2021 est.)
1.36% of GDP (2020 est.)
3.4% of GDP (2019 est.)

Budget

revenues: $24.487 billion (2020 est.)

expenditures: $26.544 billion (2020 est.)

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

1.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Public debt

32.24% of GDP (2020 est.)
26.92% of GDP (2019 est.)
28.69% of GDP (2018 est.)

note: defined by the EU's Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities: currency and deposits, securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives, and loans; general government sector comprises the subsectors: central government, state government, local government, and social security funds

Taxes and other revenues

20.27% (of GDP) (2020 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Current account balance

-$373.66 million (2021 est.)
-$31.19 million (2020 est.)
$1.264 billion (2019 est.)

Exports

$62.514 billion (2022 est.)
$51.505 billion (2021 est.)
$39.541 billion (2020 est.)

note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.

Exports - partners

Germany 14%, Romania 10%, Greece 8%, Italy 8%, Turkey 6% (2021)

Exports - commodities

copper, wheat, electricity, refined petroleum, packaged medicines (2021)

note: Bulgarian amphetamine production remains a significant illicit trade export

Imports

$62.329 billion (2022 est.)
$50.059 billion (2021 est.)
$38.197 billion (2020 est.)

note: data are in current year dollars

Imports - partners

Germany 12%, Turkey 8%, Greece 8%, Romania 8%, Italy 7% (2021)

Imports - commodities

crude petroleum, copper, cars, packaged medicines, refined petroleum (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$39.188 billion (31 December 2021 est.)
$37.86 billion (31 December 2020 est.)
$27.902 billion (31 December 2019 est.)

Debt - external

$39.059 billion (2019 est.)
$41.139 billion (2018 est.)

Exchange rates

leva (BGN) per US dollar -

Exchange rates:
1.654 (2021 est.)
1.716 (2020 est.)
1.747 (2019 est.)
1.657 (2018 est.)
1.735 (2017 est.)