Bulgaria's foreign trade gap contracts 73.4% Y/Y in January-May
Bulgaria's foreign trade deficit plummeted 73.4 per cent on an annual basis in the first five months of 2011 to 622.8 million leva, equal to 0.8 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), the National Statistics Institute said on July 11 2011.Exports rose 47.2 per cent on the year to 15.69 billion leva by the end of May, while imports totalled 16.31 billion leva, up 25.45 per cent.In May alone, the country's exports went up by 35.6 per cent compared with a whopping increase of 72.5 per cent in January. Imports grew 18.8 per cent against 37.11 per cent in January.The slowdown in exports was observed in all types of products. The statistics institute, however, has released detailed information only about trade with countries outside the European Union, with general data, including trade with partners in the bloc, to be published next month.The largest volume of exports by nominal value, of 1.806 billion leva, was registered in fuels, followed by semi-products (goods classified by type of material), which were worth 1.468 billion leva, and machine building, which amounted to 705.8 million leva.As to imports, the country recorded the most significant increase in purchases of fuels from third countries, which added 46 per cent year-on-year to 1.158 billion leva. Second came imports of chemical products, which rose 48 per cent to 436.9 million leva. /Source: The Sofia Echo/