DETERMINANTS OF GREEK FDI OUTFLOWS IN THE BALKAN REGION (THE CASE OF GREEK ENTREPRENEURS IN BULGARIA)

DETERMINANTS OF GREEK FDI OUTFLOWS IN THE BALKAN REGION (THE CASE OF GREEK ENTREPRENEURS IN BULGARIA)

ELEFTHERIA KONIARI

Abstract

Greece and Bulgaria have had trade relations for centuries, mainly because of their geographic proximity, cultural closeness, similar Balkan business mentality, and common religious beliefs. The people of Bulgaria have always admired Greek traders. That the two countries were historically related in the Byzantine and Ottoman empires brought them even closer. The communist regime and the cold war between Eastern Europe and Western countries deactivated relations, but after the fall of communism, trade recovered significantly, and the two countries are currently on very good terms. There are many more reasons why Greek small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large firms are so economically active and welcome in Bulgaria, as well as in other southeast European countries (SEECs) such as Albania, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Serbia and Montenegro, and Romania. Greece is a member of the European Union and the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU).

Key words

entrepreneurs, foreign direct investment, causes of accumulation, potential motives, barriers

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