Bulgaria’s GDP Contracted by 4.2% in 2020, Year on Year

Between October and December 2020, Bulgaria's GDP at current prices amounted to 33,162 million leva, according to preliminary data released by the National Statistical Institute on Tuesday. In euro terms, GDP totalled 16,956 million euro, and per capita GDP was 2,452 euro. Seasonally adjusted data show a decline of 3.8 per cent of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2020 from a year earlier and an increase of 2.2 per cent from the third quarter of 2020.

In 2020, GDP at current prices amounted to 118,605 million leva. In euro terms, GDP totalled 60,642 million euro or 8,748 euro per person. Preliminary data show a decline of real GDP by 4.2 per cent in 2020 compared with 2019.

The Gross Value Added (GVA) generated by the national economy in the fourth quarter of 2020 amounted to 28,780 million leva at current prices.

The share of agriculture in the national GVA in the fourth quarter of 2020 increased by 0.4 percentage points compared to the same quarter of 2019. Industry increased its share in the national GVA to 23.9 per cent, which was 1.4 percentage points up from the same quarter of the previous year. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, services decreased their contribution to the national GVA from 74.7 per cent to 72.9 per cent.

Between October and December 2020, 79.8 per cent of the GDP was used for final consumption expenditure. Investments (gross fixed capital formation) accounted for 21.2 per cent of GDP. The balance of trade in goods and services (exports/imports) was negative.

In the fourth quarter of 2020, GDP increased by 2.2 per cent compared to the previous quarter, while GVA grew by 1.4 per cent.

According to preliminary data, final consumption decreased by 1.2 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2020 from the third quarter. Gross fixed capital formation decreased by 0.1 per cent for the same period. In the fourth quarter of 2020, the export of goods and services increased by 11.2 per cent, and the import of goods and services increased by 4.4 per cent, quarter-on-quarter.

In the fourth quarter of 2020, GDP decreased by 3.8 per cent, year on year, while GVA decreased by 3.9 per cent from the fourth quarter of 2019.

The negative growth was due to a decrease in the following economic activities: arts, entertainment and recreation, repair of household goods and other services (11.4 per cent), wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles; transportation and storage; accommodation and food service activities (10.0 per cent), mining and quarrying; manufacturing; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; water supply, waste management and remediation activities (6.8 per cent), professional, scientific and technical activities; administrative and support service activities (4.9 per cent).

With regard to the expenditure components of GDP, the decline of 7.9 per cent in gross capital formation and by 0.3 per cent in individual final consumption contributed to the registered negative economic growth. Export and import of goods and services decreased by 11.2 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively, from the same quarter of the previous year.

Gross value added at current prices amounted to 102,649 million leva. In real terms, GVA decreased by 4.3 per cent in comparison with 2019.

The share of industry in the national GVA was 26.5 per cent, up by 1.5 percentage points from 2019. Services contributed 69.5 per cent, and agriculture 4 per cent to GVA, compared with 71.2 and 3.8 per cent in 2019, respectively.