Every second active company in Bulgaria does not have even a single employee and only its owner works in it, a survey of the National Statistical Institute shows. Every newly-established company functions for slightly less than one year on average, the survey further shows. In 2016 the number of sole proprietorship companies amounted to nearly 170,000, or 48.8% of all 347,000 companies in Bulgaria. Nearly 127,000 companies, or just over a third of all functioning companies, employ up to four people. Only 7.9% of the companies employ over ten people, NSI informs.