Bulgaria
- Land area
- 111,002 km2
- Population
- 7.2 million
- Currency
- Bulgarian lev [BGN]
The Republic of Bulgaria is situated in south-eastern Europe on the eastern half of the Balkan Peninsula. This regionally diverse country extends from the vast Danubian Plain in the north across the coastal region of the Black Sea and on to the plateaus and mountains in the south.
Bulgaria has one of the greatest economic backlogs of all European Union member states. The country’s largest economic sectors are energy generation, the food industry, the metal industry and tourism. Bulgaria’s key challenges remain its underdeveloped public infrastructure – most notably its transportation and health systems – the large debt of government companies, and the strong population decline that is worsening as a result of emigration.
Consumer spending in Bulgaria is comparatively low. In Slovakia and the Czech Republic, for instance, per capita consumption is about twice as high. Neighbourhood shops and independent local suppliers are still important retail formats in Bulgaria, and the intensity of competition in the retail industry is altogether rather low.