SOFIA, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Bulgaria's exports to and imports from the European Union (EU) grew by 6.0 percent and 1.5 percent respectively in the third quarter of 2016 year-on-year, the country's National Statistical Institute (NSI) said Friday.
According to the NSI's preliminary data, Bulgarian exports to the EU amounted to 23 billion lev (12.43 billion U.S. dollars) from January to September 2016.
Bulgaria's main trading partners were Germany, Italy, Romania, Greece and France which accounted for 64.4 percent of exports to EU member states, the NSI said.
In comparison with the same period of 2015, the largest growths in Bulgarian exports to the EU were recorded in beverages and tobacco (30.6 percent) and chemical and related products (19.0 percent), while the most notable fall was recorded in mineral fuel, lubricants and related materials (23.9 percent).
Meanwhile, Bulgarian imports from the EU from January to September 2016 reached 24.5 billion lev. The largest amounts reported for goods imported were from Germany, Italy, Romania, Greece and Poland, the NSI said.
In the third quarter, the largest growth in imports from the EU was reported in the beverage and tobacco sector (12.5 percent), while the most notable fall was observed in "crude materials, inedible (except fuel)" sector (26.6 percent).
During the period, the foreign trade balance with the EU was negative (1.5 billion lev), but it was a big improvement from the negative 2.5 billion lev that Bulgaria recorded in the same period of 2015, NSI data showed. (1 U.S. dollar = 1.85 Bulgarian lev)
