Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

Study: Over 20% of Bulgaria's economy is in the informal sector

Prof. Stefan Petranov
Photo: bica-bg.org

Grey economy accounts for 1/5 of Bulgaria's GDP, according to a study by the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association and the National Centre "Economy in the Clear". 


Still, since 2010, the share of the regulated economy has increased by 15%, from 63.35% to 78.40%. Despite this positive trend, the informal sector in Bulgaria has a higher rate than in any other EU country. 


"We have seen a significant improvement - the number of employment contracts where employees are insured on minimum wage while in reality they receive more, has decreased, , says the author of the study Stefan Petranov. The sectors most affected by the informal economy are services, hotels, restaurants, construction and agriculture. 



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Families are taking out more quick loans to cover consumer expenses

For the first half of 2024, the fast loans reached over 3 billion euros, according to the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) . In comparison, at the end of June 2023, the granted quick loans totalled 2.5 billion euros. According to the..

published on 8/19/24 8:50 AM

Natural gas prices are expected to decrease by 2% in September

Natural gas prices are expected to decrease by around 2% in September, according to a forecast by Bulgargaz. This is clear from the request submitted to the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC). The company informs that next month, the..

published on 8/17/24 2:47 PM

Unemployment in Bulgaria has dropped by 7.6% on an annual basis

The unemployment rate in Bulgaria stood at 5.41% in July, the National Employment Agency says. 152,844 is the number of unemployed persons registered last month, and 14,542 started work. An increase in the number of job vacancies has been..

published on 8/16/24 2:29 PM