Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Bulgaria meets the criteria for Eurozone membership

Photo: Reuters

At the end of 2024, Bulgaria's macroeconomic indicators fully met the Maastricht criteria for Eurozone membership, BGNES informs.

According to Eurostat data, inflation from June to November was below 3%, which is a requirement for adopting the single currency. The other important indicator for entering the Eurozone is the budget deficit, which will also be within 3%. In addition, Bulgaria has the lowest unemployment in recent years of about 4% and the debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio is nearly two times lower than the set criterion of 60%.

The European Commission's forecasts for Bulgaria’s economic development are positive - this year inflation is to decrease to 2.3% and the fiscal deficit is to reach 2.8%. Based on these data, economists believe that Bulgaria can become a member of the Eurozone in the middle of this year or in early 2026.



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

Daytime temperatures will rise, but it will be cloudy in the morning

On Wednesday in the morning hours when temperatures will be slightly below zero, there will be conditions for black ice to form. The lowest temperatures will be between minus 4 and 1°C; in Sofia it will be around minus 2°C. Before..

published on 1/21/25 6:50 PM

European integration of the Western Balkans and support for Ukraine remain priorities for Bulgaria

The new Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria, Georg Georgiev, has held his first telephone conversation with the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas.  Georgiev pointed out..

published on 1/21/25 4:08 PM

Austrian companies in Bulgaria expect stable business climate in 2025

The majority of Austrian companies that have invested in Bulgaria expect the economic climate in the country to remain stable (54%) or improve (13%) over the next 12 months. This was shown by the traditional "Survey among Austrian..

published on 1/21/25 3:35 PM