SOFIA, April 24 (Xinhua) -- The average agricultural land prices and rents in Bulgaria last year rose by 4.0 percent and 4.8 percent respectively, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said here on Monday.
The average price per decare of agricultural land reached 761 Bulgarian lev (416 U.S. dollars), the NSI said.
The main driver of the increase was the price of permanent grassland, which surged by 19.4 percent, the NSI data showed.
The prices of orchards, vineyards and arable land also rose by 11.3 percent, 9.1 percent, and 1.2 percent respectively, the NSI said.
Meanwhile, the average rent price per decare for hired or leased agricultural land in 2016 reached 44 Bulgarian lev.
In comparison to the previous year, a 28.1-percent increase was registered in the rent price of orchards, the price of arable land kept its level, while prices of permanent grassland and vineyards fell by 16.7 percent and 13.9 percent respectively. (1 U.S. dollar = 1.83 Bulgarian lev)
