FDI in Bulgaria in Q1 2026 was 1.9 billion euro
Foreign direct investment in Bulgaria in the first quarter of the year stood at 1.9 billion euro, the equivalent of 1.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), statistics from the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) showed on May 21.
In January-March 2025, FDI was 411.4 million euro, but the BNB originally reported 1.09 billion euro, which was revised downward later.
Investment in equity, including in the real estate sector, was 259.9 million euro (compared to an outflow of 82.7 million euro in January-March 2025) and the BNB figures showed 765.8 million euro in re-invested earnings (compared to 370.7 million euro for the first three months of last year.)
Net receipts from real estate investments by foreign companies recorded an outflow of 1.2 million euro, compared to an outflow of 2.9 million euro in the first quarter of 2025.
The central bank data showed 876.2 million euro in investment inflows as debt instruments, recorded as the change in the net liabilities of Bulgarian companies towards their foreign investor owners, compared to 123.4 million euro in the first three months of last year. Such financial flows include financial loans, suppliers’ credits and debt securities, BNB said.
By country, the largest direct investment in Bulgaria in the first quarter came from Luxembourg (137.7 million euro), Switzerland (129 million euro), and the Netherlands (87.8 million euro). Notable net outflows were recorded towards Malta (-31.2 million euro) and Poland (-10.9 million euro).
According to preliminary figures, Bulgarian investment abroad decreased by 14 million euro in January-March, compared to a decrease of 20 million euro in the same period of last year, BNB said.
(Photo: Miroslav Sárička/sxc.hu)
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