Bulgaria FDI Plummets

Foreign direct investment in the Bulgarian economy has taken a nosedive in recent years, Bulgarian Industrial Association Executive President Radosvet Radev told journalists on Tuesday, BTA reported. Radev noted that in 2017, foreign direct investment amounted to 1.858 billion leva ($1.11 billion), which was 9.8% of total investment (foreign and domestic). This compares with 17.711 billion leva in foreign direct investment in 2007, accounting for 98.6% of total investment. Between 2007 and 2017, the annual amount of total investment in Bulgaria remained relatively steady at around 18 billion leva, peaking at 24 billion leva in 2008, but the share and the absolute amount of foreign direct investment plummeted, Radev said. BIA Vice President Kamen Kolev said the Bulgarian economy has been decapitalized and clearly needs more investment. In the first six months of 2018, foreign direct investment stood at 250 million leva, which was half the level in the first six months of 2017, Kolev said, citing data from the Bulgarian National Bank.