2026.04.0908:19:40UTC+00Bulgaria Industrial Output Falls at Softer Pace

Industrial production in Bulgaria fell by 8.1% year-on-year in February 2026, easing from an upwardly revised 9.9% decline in January. This was the fourteenth consecutive month of contraction in industrial activity, but the pace of decline was the mildest since December, as manufacturing output returned to growth, rising 0.4% after a 7% drop in the previous month.

Within manufacturing, output increased notably for tobacco products (47.3% vs 66.6% previously), basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations (22.6% vs 2.5%), and basic metals (15.6% vs 13.8%). At the same time, production in mining and quarrying also contracted, but at a slower rate (-21.5% vs -23.4%).

By contrast, output in electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply continued to decline sharply, with the rate of contraction accelerating to 36.1% from 18.5% in January. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, total industrial production increased by 0.9% in February, marking the first monthly rise in five months and rebounding from an upwardly revised 3.6% decline in the previous period.