Trading Partner Portal: Bulgaria
Overview
Trade Overview
Bulgaria is a European country in southeastern part of Europe, specifically in the Balkan Peninsula. One of the oldest European countries, it is surrounded by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, and the Black Sea to the east. It enjoys climates attributed to its lowland plains, the Balkan Mountains, and the coastal regions at the Black Sea, all of which give it a diversity in its economic prospects.
As of 2024, Bulgarian nominal GDP hit $112.21 billion, with its population totaling around 6.44 million people. Its top industries being agriculture, agricultural machinery and equipment, environmental technologies, and energy. Bulgaria also has a small niche in rose oil production, with the Bulgarian rose oil being highly popular in many cosmetics due to the uniqueness of its production and cultivation. The rose oil production also attracts many tourists to the annual Rose Festival year-round.
Bulgaria shifted from a centralized economy that it saw during after the fall of the Soviet Union, to a now middle-income, market-based structure. It has switched to an open economy and holds free trade agreements with many countries. Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, joining in 2007, and became a NATO country in 2004, with many EU members engaging in the majority of Bulgarian trade. Being a newer member of the EU, Bulgaria is considered an emerging market. It has not yet adopted the euro, and while having plans to do so, no date or timeline is set.
trade.gov
U.S. – Bulgaria Trade
Two-way goods trade between Bulgaria and the U.S. totaled $2.59 billion in 2025, with exports from the U.S. to Bulgaria totaling $1.11 billion. This was sharp spike from the previous $483 million in 2024. Top U.S. exports to Bulgaria were transportation equipment ($671 million), chemicals ($86 million), oil & gas ($75 million), computer and electronic products ($70 million), and non-electrical machinery ($51 million).
In this same year, U.S. imports from Bulgaria totaled $1.47 billion with top imports being computer and electronic products ($233 million), primary metals manufactures ($219 million), miscellaneous manufactures ($161 million), non-electrical machinery ($156 million), and chemicals ($143 million).
Services trade between the U.S. and Bulgaria totaled $1.38 billion in 2025, with exports totaling $894 million. Top services exports were other business services, travel, financial services, telecommunication, computer, & information services, and transport services.
Imports in services from Bulgaria to the U.S. totaled $486 million, with top imports being telecommunications, computer, & information services, other business services, travel, transport services, and personal, cultural, & recreational services.
Bulgaria – California Trade
California exports to Bulgaria totaled $37 million in 2025. The top exports were agricultural products ($11 million), computer and electronic products ($9 million), non-electrical machinery ($4 million), miscellaneous manufactures ($3 million), and chemicals ($2 million).
Meanwhile, imports from Bulgaria to California totaled $100 million, with top imports being computer and electronic products ($27 million), processed foods ($13 million), agricultural products ($11 million), non-electrical machinery ($10 million), and apparel and accessories ($9 million).
FDI – Bulgaria
During 2024, the U.S. direct investment position was $469 million in Bulgaria. Bulgarian FDI in the United States was $106 million.
bea.gov
Trade Agreements
Trade Agreements and Issues
Bulgaria has multiple trade agreements with many countries. Being a member of the EU, they have open trade with their member countries under the European Free Trade Area (EFTA) and have trade agreements negotiated through the EU. They also joined the Central European Free Trade Agreement, or CEFTA, in 1999 but turned over membership when they joined the EU but continue to have agreements with some CEFTA members. It currently holds free trade agreements with China, Turkey, Macedonia, Israel, Albania, Serbia, and Montenegro; all are outside of the EU.
Trading issues one may experience when conducting business with Bulgaria, are regulatory and legislative issues, a slow court system, difficulty acquiring construction permits, low purchasing power, and corruption in some areas of the country’s economic sectors. Political instability in recent years has made economic development slow, and one very large issue Bulgaria has been facing, as with much of Europe, is the ongoing war with Ukraine.
Despite the issues it faces, recovery is in sight through incentive and programs provided by the EU through EU post-COVID recovery grants and export increases.
Three Seas Initiative (3SI)
The Three Seas Initiative (3SI), getting its name from the three seas that border the region, was launched in 2015 by Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović and Polish President Andrzej Duda to promote interconnectivity on energy, infrastructure, and digitization projects in Central and Eastern Europe. The region has a total population of 10 million and a combined GDP of about $1.7 trillion, and has emerged as a significant driver of European economic growth. (Atlantic Council)
The U.S. has committed up to $1 billion to the 3SI, adding momentum to the project and its investment fund, helping to attract international private capital to the region. The initiative has been endorsed diplomatically by the United States, Germany, and the European Union, among others.
Currently, the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) includes:
- 13 participating states (only EU members): Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary.
- 6 strategic partners – 2022: the United States, Germany, and the European Commission; 2024: Japan; 2025: Turkey and Spain.
- 4 associated participating states – 2023: Ukraine and Moldova; 2025: Albania and Montenegro.