Bulgaria: Industrial Production Climbs Slightly, Construction Contracts in December 2025

In December 2025, Bulgaria’s industrial sector showed modest growth following two consecutive months of decline, yet on an annual basis, production fell for the 13th month in a row. Meanwhile, the construction sector experienced a significant monthly contraction, although it continued to show weak year-on-year gains for the 24th consecutive month, according to data released by the National Statistical Institute (NSI).

Industrial output in December edged up by 0.3% compared to November, after falling by 1.4% in the previous month and declining 2.4% in October. The rise was largely driven by a surge in the production and distribution of electricity, heat, and gas, which jumped 30.5% month-on-month due to colder winter conditions. Manufacturing increased modestly by 0.7%, while the mining industry saw a sharp decline of 14%.

Despite the slight monthly improvement, industrial production declined by 6.7% compared to December 2024, following a 9% decrease in November 2025. This marks the 13th consecutive month of annual contraction, after industrial output last recorded growth of 2.4% in November 2024. The steepest annual drops in December were observed in the extractive industries, down 22.3%, the production and distribution of electricity, heat, and gas falling 14.1%, and manufacturing declining 1.4%.

Construction activity, meanwhile, shrank by 2.3% in December compared to November, when it had increased by 0.8%. Output from building construction declined by 0.4%, specialized construction activities fell by 3.9%, and construction of facilities contracted by 2.9%.

On an annual basis, the construction sector maintained a weak positive trend, growing 0.6% in December 2025. Although this continued a 24-month streak of year-on-year gains, the increase was the smallest recorded since February 2024. Within the sector, construction of facilities rose by 3.5% year-on-year, building construction climbed 2.6%, while specialized construction activities fell by 3.9%.

Earlier in February, the NSI also reported on retail trade, excluding automobile and motorcycle sales, which expanded 1.6% in December 2025 compared to November’s 0.2% growth. Compared to December 2024, retail turnover surged by 7.7%, following a 3.1% increase in November, marking the strongest year-on-year growth since January 2025 and the 23rd consecutive month of expansion.