Bulgaria’s industrial business climate index rose to 18.4 in May 2026, up from a more than five-year low of 12.4 in April. This was the highest reading since June 2025 and reflected a more positive assessment of the current business situation (23.2 vs 14.2 in April), even though current production activity turned negative (-2.2 vs 3.3).
Expectations for production activity over the next three months strengthened (11.4 vs 9.4), and the employment outlook for the same period moved back into positive territory (2.5 vs -0.1). At the same time, selling price expectations for the coming three months moderated (14.7 vs 18.9).
The main factors limiting activity remained elevated economic uncertainty (48.4), labor shortages (32.7), weak domestic (23.7) and external (22.0) demand, as well as shortcomings in economic legislation (14.2).
