Bulgaria’s Trade Deficit Hits Record in December 2025 Amid Soaring Imports

In December 2025, Bulgaria’s total exports of goods rose by 2.5% compared to the same month a year earlier, reaching 6.7364 billion leva (€3.44 billion), after a contraction of 4% in November. Meanwhile, imports into the country surged by 17.3% to 9.6455 billion leva (€4.93 billion), following a 5.2% increase in November.

This sharp increase in imports pushed Bulgaria’s trade deficit to a record 2.9091 billion leva (€1.49 billion) in December 2025, according to preliminary data from the National Statistical Institute (NSI).

For the full year 2025, Bulgarian exports of goods fell by 3.2% to 83.8945 billion leva (€42.87 billion) compared to 2024, while imports rose by 6.1% to 105.6051 billion leva (€53.97 billion). This resulted in a total foreign trade deficit of 21.7106 billion leva (€11.10 billion) for the period January–December 2025.

Looking at trade by region, exports from Bulgaria to other EU countries increased in December 2025 by 6.5% year-on-year. Exports to third countries, however, declined by 3.7%. On the import side, purchases from the EU rose by 7.9%, while imports from third countries jumped sharply by 30.7%.

For the entire 2025, exports to the EU fell by 3.8% compared to 2024, and exports to non-EU countries dropped by 2.2%. Conversely, imports from EU countries increased by 4.4%, and imports from third countries rose by 8.5%.