In January 2026, the business climate within Bulgaria's industrial sector saw an uptick, rising to 15.5 from 12.5 the previous month. Expectations for business over the next six months showed notable improvement, increasing from 10.6 to 14.5. The outlook on employment also saw a positive shift, moving up to 1.8 from 1.2. While stocks of finished goods continued to decline, the decrease occurred more slowly than before, easing from -2.5 to -2.1. Additionally, the number of firms reporting no difficulties rose from 12.8 to 14.
Despite these positive trends, businesses still cited an uncertain economic climate and labor shortages as significant hurdles, though concerns slightly eased, with uncertainty changing from 50.5 to 46.8 and labor issues from 34.8 to 34.5. However, there were noticeable setbacks: current production activity worsened, falling to -6.2 from -2.9, and total orders also declined, dropping to -18.2 from -15.3. Weaknesses in both domestic and foreign demand persisted, albeit with slight improvements, noted at -17.8 (formerly -20.3) and -26.4 (-27.7 previously), respectively. Industrial confidence dipped further, moving from -1.3 to -1.9. Production expectations for the upcoming three months decreased marginally, from 10.6 to 10.5, while selling prices are anticipated to drop from 14.8 to 12.8.
