Commodity Structure of Bulgaria's Foreign Trade and the Benefits of International Exchange: Terms of Trade as a Price Dimension of Structural Development

The article examines the relationship between the commodity structure of Bulgaria’s foreign trade and the conditions of international exchange over the period 2000–2024. By calculating terms of trade across seven commodity and technology-functional categories, the study assesses whether structural upgrading of exports is accompanied by an improvement in the relative price position. The results reveal substantial differences across categories and no linear relationship between technological complexity and terms of trade. Structural and price upgrading occur simultaneously only in selected segments, highlighting the need to analyse commodity structure and price conditions jointly when assessing the development and benefits of Bulgaria’s international trade.