Bulgarian economy in a pandemic - construction and industry are shrinking, online trade is boosting

According to preliminary adjusted data, retail trade in November contracted by 6.4% compared to a year earlier and increased by 1.2% compared to October, according to the National Statistical Institute.

On an annual basis, trade in food, beverages and tobacco products decreased the most - by 14.4%, and trade in automotive fuels and lubricants - by 15.8%.

On a monthly basis, the result of anti-epidemic measures can be seen, including the closure of shopping malls, which redirected online shopping for the holidays.

Thus, in November, online orders jumped by 72%. Sales of pharmaceutical goods grew by 12%. Internet orders have doubled since the coronavirus crisis, but restrictions and self-restraints have further boosted its growth.

This became very clear in November and December, when major stores closed and people wanted to buy gifts. In turn, this overloaded suppliers and delayed orders.

As expected, sales of clothing and footwear decreased by a quarter during the month - 25.4%, and those of communication equipment - by 4.1%.

Construction sector was not largely affected by the restrictions related to the spread of the coronavirus, the calendar data for November show a decrease in construction output by 4.1% on an annual basis. Compared to October, preliminary data show a slight increase of 0.4%. On an annual basis, the decrease is determined by the negative rate in building construction, where the decrease is by 7.9%, while in civil engineering there is an increase of 1.2%. Compared to October, the output of building construction decreased by 0.5%, and of civil engineering - by 0.4%.

Industrial production contracted by 5% in November compared to the previous year, and compared to October the decrease was by 1.5%. On an annual basis, a decrease in industrial production, calculated from the calendar adjusted data, was reported in the mining and quarrying industry - by 18.1%, in the production and distribution of electricity, heat and gas - by 6.6%, and in the manufacturing - by 3.7%. Compared to October, a decrease was registered in the mining and quarrying industry - by 9.2%, in the manufacturing - by 1.1%, and in the production and distribution of electricity, heat and gas - by 0.8%.