In October, more than 400 businesspeople gave the start of Confindustria Balcani, the Balkan association of Italian companies, at a special ceremony in the Bulgarian capital Sofia.

The brand-new federation brings together Italian entrepreneurs operating in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, FYRMacedonia, Serbia and Romania.

Estimates have shown that Bulgaria can expect between EUR 1 B and EUR 3 B in foreign direct investment from Italian companies over the next few years.