Bulgaria FDIs Tower to 7% of GDP, Europe's Highest

Foreign direct investments in Bulgaria this year account for 7% of the gross domestic product, which makes it Europe's top destination for investments, the country's energy and economy minister said.

"Bulgaria may be battling the global economic crisis and witnessing a sharp drop in investment flows, but still it manages to retain its top position in Europe in terms of foreign investments as percentage of GDP," Petar Dimitrov said in the town of Varna.

Foreign investments in Bulgaria accounted for 18% of GDP last year and results so far this year are not as bleak as expected, according to the minister.

While foreign investors are interested primarily in the sector of renewable energy resources - wind generators and solar parks, local entrepreneurs are in a wait-and-see period with a stress on technology updates.

Foreign direct investments, which preliminary data sets at EUR 646.6 M, covered 59,9% of the current account gap in the first quarter of the year, official data shows.

Bulgaria's current account deficit continues to shrink and stood at EUR 1,078 B or 3,2% of the expected GDP in the first quarter of 2009 year-upon-year, the central bank announced.

The deficit, which is Bulgaria's key economic concern, amounted to EUR 1.980 B or 5.8% of GDP during the same period a year ago.

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