Made here

The twenty imports Bulgaria is best placed to replace.

Bulgaria imported USD 37bn of manufactured goods in 2024 and exported USD 31bn. These are the twenty that sit closest to what it already makes well, with how concentrated the supply of each is.

Choose a country

USD 2.1bnthe twenty, imported in 2024

57products imported at scale, not yet exported well, and close to existing strengths

1220products Bulgaria already exports well

5,355public purchases of goods joined to a product family, from Tenders Electronic Daily (EU)

The twenty

Demand, capability, exposure. Nothing else is claimed.

Each line shows the import bill, where it comes from, the nearest thing Bulgaria already exports well, and how many countries make it. It does not say whether a plant in Bulgaria would pay. That reason is not in any trade record, and it is the maker's question.

This edition carries public buyers from Tenders Electronic Daily (EU), 16,225 award notices from 2025-11-03 to 2026-11-02, joined to each product's customs heading through a crosswalk we authored. The buyers are shown as context and do not change the score, because award values in these records include framework ceilings and outliers that would distort it. The regional layer (where the capability sits) is built only where a country publishes regional trade by product, and Bulgaria does not publish it in a form this record can read yet.

1

Rubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), articles n.e.c. in heading no. 4016, of non-cellular rubberHS 401699

Comes fromTurkey 66%, 68 source countries

Nearest export strengthRubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), gaskets, washers and... (exports USD 58m)

Exports of this lineUSD 24m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 6 of 8: import bill USD 100m, top 8 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 45 per cent (1); Turkey supplies 66 per cent (2).

USD 100mup 34% on 2022
2

Cement: portland, other than white, whether or not artificially colouredHS 252329

Comes fromTurkey 87%, 10 source countries

Nearest export strengthElectrical energy (exports USD 1.2bn)

Exports of this lineUSD 19m

Public buyers in the family77 awards from 52 buyers. Most frequent: Тец Марица Изток 2 Еад

Score 6 of 8: import bill USD 52m, top 19 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 11 per cent (2); Turkey supplies 87 per cent (2).

USD 52mup 32% on 2022
3

Iron or steel: structures and parts thereof, n.e.c. in heading 7308HS 730890

Comes fromTurkey 28%, 54 source countries

Nearest export strengthAluminium: structures (excluding prefabricated buildings of heading... (exports USD 23m)

Exports of this lineUSD 90m; 2 more lines in the heading, USD 59m

Public buyers in the family42 awards from 26 buyers. Most frequent: Електроразпределителни мрежи Запад ЕАД

Score 5 of 8: import bill USD 195m, top 3 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 16 per cent (2).

USD 195mup 36% on 2022
4

Sugars: sucrose, chemically pure, in solid form, not containing added flavouring or colouring matterHS 170199

Comes fromUkraine 43%, 38 source countries

Nearest export strengthFood preparations: sweet biscuits, whether or not containing cocoa (exports USD 32m)

Exports of this lineUSD 26m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 5 of 8: import bill USD 124m, top 7 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 25 per cent (1); Ukraine supplies 43 per cent (1).

USD 124mdown 0% on 2022
5

Fertilizers, mineral or chemical: nitrogenous, urea, whether or not in aqueous solutionHS 310210

Comes fromEgypt 48%, 31 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 13m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 25m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 5 of 8: import bill USD 107m, top 8 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 30 per cent (1); Egypt supplies 48 per cent (1).

USD 107mdown 63% on 2022
6

Luminaires and light fittings: chandeliers and electric ceiling or wall light fittings: (excluding those used for...HS 940511

Comes fromChina 78%, 42 source countries

Nearest export strengthFurniture: metal, other than for office use (exports USD 57m)

Exports of this lineUSD 23m; 2 more lines in the heading, USD 49m

Public buyers in the family36 awards from 22 buyers. Most frequent: Община Никопол

Score 5 of 8: import bill USD 44m, top 23 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 47 per cent (1); China supplies 78 per cent (2).

USD 44mdown 15% on 2022
7

Vehicles: with only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel), cylinder capacity...HS 870332

Comes fromGermany 26%, 49 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 42m; 9 more lines in the heading, USD 1.5bn

Public buyers in the family283 awards from 101 buyers. Most frequent: Община Варна

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 319m, top 1 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 45 per cent (1).

USD 319mup 72% on 2022
8

Plastics: other articles n.e.c. in chapter 39HS 392690

Comes fromGermany 24%, 103 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 116m

Public buyers in the family192 awards from 71 buyers. Most frequent: Министерство на отбраната

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 234m, top 2 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 48 per cent (1).

USD 234mup 7% on 2022
9

Reception apparatus for television, whether or not incorporating radio-broadcast receivers or sound or video recording...HS 852872

Comes fromHungary 26%, 44 source countries

Nearest export strengthHair-removing appliances: with self-contained electric motor (exports USD 4m)

Exports of this lineUSD 26m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 39m

Public buyers in the family301 awards from 120 buyers. Most frequent: Технически Университет

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 191m, top 3 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 50 per cent (1).

USD 191mup 2% on 2022
10

Rubber: new pneumatic tyres, of a kind used on motor cars (including station wagons and racing cars)HS 401110

Comes fromChina 20%, 50 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 6m; 3 more lines in the heading, USD 102m

Public buyers in the family143 awards from 64 buyers. Most frequent: Бургасбус Еоод

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 156m, top 5 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 43 per cent (1).

USD 156mup 4% on 2022
11

Dog or cat food: put up for retail sale, used in animal feedingHS 230910

Comes fromHungary 20%, 52 source countries

Nearest export strengthSugars: lactose and lactose syrup, containing by weight less than... (exports USD 943k)

Exports of this lineUSD 13m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 98m, top 9 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 45 per cent (1).

USD 98mup 28% on 2022
12

Insulated electric conductors: for a voltage not exceeding 1000 volts, fitted with connectorsHS 854442

Comes fromChina 18%, 80 source countries

Nearest export strengthElectrical apparatus: switches n.e.c. in heading no. 8536, for a... (exports USD 150m)

Exports of this lineUSD 48m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 29m

Public buyers in the family22 awards from 7 buyers. Most frequent: Електроразпределителни мрежи Запад ЕАД

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 89m, top 9 per cent of candidates (3); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 27 per cent (1).

USD 89mdown 21% on 2022
13

Footwear: (other than sportswear), with outer soles of rubber or plastics and uppers of textile materialsHS 640419

Comes fromChina 41%, 83 source countries

Nearest export strengthFootwear: parts, uppers and parts thereof, other than stiffeners (exports USD 50m)

Exports of this lineUSD 15m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 40m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 71m, top 12 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 28 per cent (1); China supplies 41 per cent (1).

USD 71mup 11% on 2022
14

Trailers and semi-trailers: (other than tanker type)HS 871639

Comes fromGermany 44%, 39 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 25m; 2 more lines in the heading, USD 28m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 56m, top 17 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 37 per cent (1); Germany supplies 44 per cent (1).

USD 56mdown 49% on 2022
15

Medicaments: containing corticosteroid hormones, their derivatives or structural analogues (but not containing...HS 300432

Comes fromItaly 41%, 24 source countries

Nearest export strengthMedicaments: consisting of mixed or unmixed products n.e.c. in... (exports USD 955m)

Exports of this lineUSD 15m; 4 more lines in the heading, USD 153m

Public buyers in the family11 awards from 3 buyers. Most frequent: Университетска многопрофилна болница за активно лечение по инфекциозни и паразитни болести "Проф. Иван Киров ЕАД

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 55m, top 17 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 50 per cent (1); Italy supplies 41 per cent (1).

USD 55mup 44% on 2022
16

Iron or non-alloy steel: bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, containing indentations, ribs, grooves...HS 721310

Comes fromGreece 42%, 11 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 3m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 79m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 49m, top 20 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 39 per cent (1); Greece supplies 42 per cent (1).

USD 49mdown 6% on 2022
17

Furniture: wooden, for bedroom useHS 940350

Comes fromTurkey 33%, 48 source countries

Nearest export strengthFurniture: wooden, other than for office, kitchen or bedroom use (exports USD 86m)

Exports of this lineUSD 26m; 1 more line in the heading, USD 13m

Public buyers in the family155 awards from 76 buyers. Most frequent: Община Созопол

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 45m, top 22 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 19 per cent (2).

USD 45mup 30% on 2022
18

Amino-resins: urea and thiourea resins, in primary formsHS 390910

Comes fromRomania 51%, 17 source countries

Nearest export strengthnone named

Exports of this lineUSD 168k; 2 more lines in the heading, USD 32m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 44m, top 23 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 38 per cent (1); Romania supplies 51 per cent (1).

USD 44mdown 10% on 2022
19

Trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts: women's or girls', of cotton (not knitted or crocheted)HS 620462

Comes fromBangladesh 38%, 84 source countries

Nearest export strengthJackets and blazers: women's or girls', of cotton (not knitted or... (exports USD 15m)

Exports of this lineUSD 30m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 40m, top 25 per cent of candidates (2); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 17 per cent (2).

USD 40mup 14% on 2022
20

Rubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), tubing, piping and hoses, not reinforced or otherwise combined with other...HS 400911

Comes fromTurkey 92%, 52 source countries

Nearest export strengthRubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), gaskets, washers and... (exports USD 58m)

Exports of this lineUSD 1m

Public buyers in the familynone matched to this product family

Score 4 of 8: import bill USD 37m, top 28 per cent of candidates (1); proximity to Bulgaria's export strengths in the top 47 per cent (1); Turkey supplies 92 per cent (2).

USD 37mup 53% on 2022

The whole record for one line, as a document

Work email

The bill and its path, the sources and their unit values, who exports the line well, the nearest strengths, the public buyers where a country publishes them, and the method. We reply by email. Privacy

One line per customs heading. Products Bulgaria already exports well and still imports are below, because they are a different conversation. No employment figures appear on this page, by decision.

Made here already, still imported

Scale conversations, not capability ones.

Medicaments: consisting of mixed or unmixed products n.e.c. in heading no.... imports USD 1.4bn, exports USD 955m, top source Germany 18%
Cigarettes: containing tobacco imports USD 280m, exports USD 116m, top source Romania 38%
Propylene, other olefin polymers: polypropylene in primary forms imports USD 192m, exports USD 65m, top source Greece 27%
Copper: wire, of refined copper, of which the maximum cross-sectional... imports USD 177m, exports USD 61m, top source Turkey 92%
Ammonia: anhydrous imports USD 148m, exports USD 37m, top source Trinidad and Tobago 47%
Poly(ethylene terephthalate): in primary forms, having a viscosity of 78ml/g... imports USD 150m, exports USD 43m, top source Vietnam 61%
Waters: including mineral and aerated, containing added sugar or other... imports USD 154m, exports USD 50m, top source Hungary 27%
Tractors: n.e.c. in heading no 8701 (other than tractors of heading no 8709)... imports USD 135m, exports USD 48m, top source United States 39%
Tractors: road tractors for semi-trailers, with only compression-ignition... imports USD 168m, exports USD 101m, top source Netherlands 32%
Explosives: propellent powders imports USD 69m, exports USD 7m, top source Egypt 43%

How the twenty were chosen

Three scores, each from a field the record carries.

Import bill, 0 to 3, by percentile among the 713 lines imported at USD 10m or more: above the median one point, top quarter two, top tenth three.

Proximity to export strengths, 0 to 3, on the same percentiles: the product-space method (Hidalgo, Klinger, Barabasi and Hausmann, Science 2007) on CEPII's BACI file of every bilateral trade flow for 2024, 157 countries and 5,388 products. Two products are close when the countries that export one well tend to export the other well. Only products in the upper half for proximity can enter the list at all: best placed is a proximity claim.

Supply concentration, 0 to 2: one point when a single country supplies 40 per cent or more, two at 60 per cent.

Public buyers, context only, never scored: 16,225 award notices from Tenders Electronic Daily (EU), 2025-11-03 to 2026-11-02, of which 7,925 were classified by the buyer as goods and 5,355 joined to a product family through a crosswalk we authored, because no official one exists. Only notices whose code names a specific product group are joined; broad division codes are left out. The join is a family, not an exact line, and the counts are a floor.

Scope. Manufactured goods, customs chapters 16 to 96, excluding ores, fuels and precious metals. Primary agriculture is out of scope for a page about manufacture.

What it cannot tell you

A map of where to look.

Trade data says what crossed the border, not why. Cost, scale, patents, tariffs and the plain fact that a supplier is good at it are all invisible here. The world file reconciles what each pair of countries reports, so a national customs file would differ in detail. Nothing on this page is a forecast or a promise.

Source: CEPII BACI, HS22, version 202601, years 2022 to 2024. Edition of 2026-11-03. The UK edition with its procurement and regional layers is at /made-here/.

Want the Bulgaria edition kept current?

Leave an address and each new edition comes to you as the record moves. Tick the box if you would want the next layer for Bulgaria: which public bodies buy each line, once that record is readable.

What Bulgaria buys, and from whom: the trade lanes into Bulgaria.

Run a company? Check it against the developments BuzzBaboon follows, free.

The twenty imports Bulgaria is best placed to replace.

Demand, capability, exposure. Nothing else is claimed.

Rubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), articles n.e.c. in heading no. 4016, of non-cellular rubberHS 401699

Cement: portland, other than white, whether or not artificially colouredHS 252329

Iron or steel: structures and parts thereof, n.e.c. in heading 7308HS 730890

Sugars: sucrose, chemically pure, in solid form, not containing added flavouring or colouring matterHS 170199

Fertilizers, mineral or chemical: nitrogenous, urea, whether or not in aqueous solutionHS 310210

Luminaires and light fittings: chandeliers and electric ceiling or wall light fittings: (excluding those used for...HS 940511

Vehicles: with only compression-ignition internal combustion piston engine (diesel or semi-diesel), cylinder capacity...HS 870332

Plastics: other articles n.e.c. in chapter 39HS 392690

Reception apparatus for television, whether or not incorporating radio-broadcast receivers or sound or video recording...HS 852872

Rubber: new pneumatic tyres, of a kind used on motor cars (including station wagons and racing cars)HS 401110

Dog or cat food: put up for retail sale, used in animal feedingHS 230910

Insulated electric conductors: for a voltage not exceeding 1000 volts, fitted with connectorsHS 854442

Footwear: (other than sportswear), with outer soles of rubber or plastics and uppers of textile materialsHS 640419

Trailers and semi-trailers: (other than tanker type)HS 871639

Medicaments: containing corticosteroid hormones, their derivatives or structural analogues (but not containing...HS 300432

Iron or non-alloy steel: bars and rods, hot-rolled, in irregularly wound coils, containing indentations, ribs, grooves...HS 721310

Furniture: wooden, for bedroom useHS 940350

Amino-resins: urea and thiourea resins, in primary formsHS 390910

Trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts: women's or girls', of cotton (not knitted or crocheted)HS 620462

Rubber: vulcanised (other than hard rubber), tubing, piping and hoses, not reinforced or otherwise combined with other...HS 400911

Scale conversations, not capability ones.

Three scores, each from a field the record carries.

A map of where to look.

Want the Bulgaria edition kept current?