Slovenia: Economic and Political Overview

Economic Indicators

Slovenia has been an open market since its successful economic transition in the 2000s. As a member of the European Union since May 2004 and of the Eurozone since 2007, Slovenia is an advanced, independent, and stable country. After contracting due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Slovenia’s GDP rebounded quickly. However, the country’s economy grew by 1.6% in 2024, slowing from 2.1% in 2023 and 2.7% in 2022, according to the country's Statistical Office. Household and government spending contributed positively to GDP growth, while gross fixed capital formation and external trade had a negative impact on growth. Economic growth is forecast to accelerate to 2.5% in 2025 and 2.6% in 2026, as private consumption is expected to grow strongly, supported by employment growth and rising real wages. Investment is projected to increase, driven by the deployment of RRF-financed measures and cohesion policy projects, as well as higher demand for machinery and equipment due to improving financial conditions and stronger export demand. Meanwhile, imports are expected to rise in line with higher consumption and investment. The contribution from net exports to growth is expected to remain neutral in 2025 and turn negative in 2026, according to EU Commission data.

In 2024, Slovenia's budget deficit was just 1.2% of GDP, the lowest in five years (official governmental data). Revenue surpassed the projected EUR 14 billion, reaching EUR 14.6 billion, mainly due to record employment, higher salaries, strong business performance, and additional revenue from the Reconstruction, Development, and Provision of Financial Resources Act. This included a temporary corporate income tax increase and EUR 280 million from the Slovenian Sovereign Holding, allocated to flood recovery efforts. On the expenditure side, EUR 15.4 billion was spent, below the planned EUR 16.2 billion, resulting in savings of EUR 0.8 billion. Unspent funds for flood recovery were due to uncertainties in implementation, though nearly EUR 0.5 billion was allocated for aid, and EUR 530 million was invested in the Reconstruction Fund. In 2025, the deficit is projected at 2% (IMF). After increasing due to the COVID-19-led crisis, the public debt-to-GDP ratio decreased to 67.4% in 2024 (from 68.4% one year earlier) and is expected to further decelerate to 65.5% by 2026 (IMF). Similarly, Slovenia's average annual inflation decreased to 2% in 2024, down from 7.4% in 2023, according to data from the Statistical Office of Slovenia (SSO). Inflation in Slovenia is expected to rise slightly to 2.7% in 2025, as consumers face higher electricity bills due to the reintroduction of charges suspended during the energy price crisis and increases in grid fees. Services inflation is projected to remain high, driven by rapid wage growth. However, inflation is forecast to ease to 2.1% in 2026 (data IMF).

After strong growth in 2023, employment growth stagnated in the first half of 2024. Limited availability of workers remained the dominant factor in the labour market, according to companies, while wages continued to rise. The unemployment rate was estimated at 3.5% in 2024 and should remain broadly neutral over the forecast horizon (IMF). According to the latest data from Eurostat, around 14% of the population is at risk of poverty or social exclusion, the second-lowest ratio in the EU. Nevertheless, poverty amongst the senior population, consisting of mostly women and marginalized minorities, is an area of severe concern; to address this, the government deployed a specific strategy for elder people. Overall, the IMF estimated the country’s GDP per capita (PPP) at USD 55,683 in 2024, still below the EU average.

Main Sectors of Industry

Slovenia has a skilled and productive labour force of around 1.05 million people out of its 2.12 million population. The agricultural sector is declining and accounts for only 1.5% of the GDP, employing around 4% of the population (World Bank, latest data available). The country counts 67,927 agricultural holdings, with the total utilized agricultural area equating to 30.6% of the total area. In 2023, the organic utilized agricultural area totalled 46,195 hectares, marking a 10% increase compared to the previous year. An additional 8,408 hectares were undergoing conversion to organic farming. Combined, this accounted for about 11% of the total utilized agricultural area being cultivated organically (Slovenian Statistical Office). The country’s main crops include cereals like corn and wheat, as well as fruits such as apples, grapes, and berries. Vegetables like potatoes, cabbage, and carrots are commonly grown, along with oilseeds like sunflower and rapeseed. Forage crops, including alfalfa and clover, support the country's livestock production. Forestry is a key economic factor, with 56% of the land area forested and an annual production value of EUR 250 million contributing to the economy. The value of crop production in 2024 was expected to reach EUR 884 million, reflecting a 6% increase compared to the previous year. This growth is primarily due to a 9% rise in production volume, despite a 3% decrease in prices (SSO).

The industrial sector represents 29.7% of GDP and almost one-third of employment (32.2%). Historically, the dominant industries in Slovenia have been forestry, textiles, and metallurgy. Since the 1980s, mechanical industries (automobiles, tool machines) and high-value-added industries (electronics, pharmacy, and chemicals) have experienced significant development. The World Bank estimates the manufacturing sector to contribute 20% of GDP. Slovenia's industrial output decreased by 1.2% in 2024, marking the second consecutive year of decline, according to the country's Statistical Office. The largest annual drop was seen in the electricity, gas, and steam sector, which fell by 21.5%. In contrast, mining experienced the largest increase, rising by 14.3% (SSO).

The tertiary sector remains the most significant in the Slovenian economy. It represents 57.7% of the GDP and employs 63.8% of the total workforce, showing a strong growth pattern over the last ten years, especially in information and communications technology (ITC), financial, commercial services, and retail businesses. The tourism sector is dynamic and has experienced strong development in recent years. After suffering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the country recorded a 6.3%  increase in tourist arrivals in 2024 compared to 2023, welcoming a total of 6.58 million visitors. Overnight stays increased by 4.5% year-on-year to 16.85 million, according to the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia. The retail sector is also important, although in 2024 volume turnover decreased by 0.6% compared to 2023. Retail trade in automotive fuel fell by 6.4%, while retail trade in food products increased by 1.5% and in non-food products by 0.3%. Volume turnover from trade and repair of motor vehicles rose by 0.1% on a monthly basis (SSO). According to the latest figures from the European Banking Federation, the Slovenian banking sector comprises 9 commercial banks, one development and export bank (100% owned by the government), three savings banks, and two branches of foreign banks.

 

Breakdown of Economic Activity By Sector	Agriculture	Industry	Services
Employment By Sector (in % of Total Employment)	4.0	32.2	63.8
Value Added (in % of GDP)	1.5	29.7	57.7
Value Added (Annual % Change)	-3.9	5.6	1.2

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 

Find more information about your business sector on our service Market Reports.

 

 

Monetary Indicators	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Euro (EUR) - Average Annual Exchange Rate For 1 MUR	0.03	0.03	0.02	0.03	0.02

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 

 

Find out all the exchange rates daily on our service Currency Converter.

Indicator of Economic Freedom

Definition

Definition:

The Economic freedom index measure ten components of economic freedom, grouped into four broad categories or pillars of economic freedom: Rule of Law (property rights, freedom from corruption); Limited Government (fiscal freedom, government spending); Regulatory Efficiency (business freedom, labour freedom, monetary freedom); and Open Markets (trade freedom, investment freedom, financial freedom). Each of the freedoms within these four broad categories is individually scored on a scale of 0 to 100. A country’s overall economic freedom score is a simple average of its scores on the 10 individual freedoms.

Score:

68,3/100

World Rank:

48

Regional Rank:

28

Economic freedom in the world (interactive map)
Source: Index of Economic Freedom, Heritage Foundation

 

Business environment ranking

Definition

Definition:

The business rankings model measures the quality or attractiveness of the business environment in the 82 countries covered by The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Country Forecast reports. It examines ten separate criteria or categories, covering the political environment, the macroeconomic environment, market opportunities, policy towards free enterprise and competition, policy towards foreign investment, foreign trade and exchange controls, taxes, financing, the labour market and infrastructure.

Score:

6.75/10

World Rank:

34/82

Source: The Economist Intelligence Unit - Business Environment Rankings 2020-2024

 

Foreign Trade in Figures

Slovenia is highly open to foreign trade, which represents about 160% of the country's GDP (World Bank, latest data available). This high level of openness makes Slovenia very dependent on the economic health of its main commercial partners: the country is integrated within German and Austrian production chains for automobiles and electrical and electronic equipment, and in Swiss chains for the pharmaceuticals industry, and generates more than half of its goods exports from these four sectors. The largest share of total trade in 2023 was medicinal and pharmaceutical products, constituting approximately one-third (34%) of the total export value. Following closely were products in the categories of road vehicles (8.4%), electrical machinery, apparatus, and appliances (6.7%), general industrial machinery and equipment (4.1%), and petroleum, petroleum products, and related materials (3.7%). Regarding imports, organic chemicals took precedence, accounting for 19.0% of the total imports and displaying a twofold increase compared to the previous year. They were succeeded by medicinal and pharmaceutical products (14.3%), road vehicles (8.0%), petroleum, petroleum products, and related materials (6.1%), and electrical machinery, apparatus, and appliances (5.2% - data Slovenia Statistical Office).

Data from the national statistical office show that in 2023 the main export destinations were Switzerland (27.3% of the total), Germany (13.5%), Italy (8.6%), Croatia (7.8%), and Austria (5.7%); while the country imported the most in terms of value from Switzerland (16.4%), China (13.0%), Germany (12.2%), Italy (10.3%), and Austria (7.2%). The EU accounted for 55.5% of total exports and 55.9% of imports.

Slovenia’s overall trade balance is structurally positive; however, the country is generally a net importer of goods. The trend reversed in 2023, when exports and imports of goods stood at USD 73 billion and 71.4 billion, respectively. In the same year, services exports reached USD 12.7 billion against USD 8.5 billion in imports (data WTO). Therefore, the country’s overall trade balance was estimated to be positive by 6.4% of GDP (from 1.7% in 2022). The latest data from Statistics Slovenia show that, in 2024, the country recorded a trade deficit of EUR 7.63 billion (USD 7.9 billion). Exports totalled EUR 61.48 billion, rising by 11.8% year over year, while imports increased by 21.1% to EUR 69.1 billion.

Sources of General Economic Information

Ministries

Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport
Ministry of Finance

Statistical Office

Statistical Office

Central Bank

Bank of Slovenia

Stock Exchange

Ljubljana Stock Exchange

Search Engines

Leading search engine including maps, news, images and other services (in local language only)

Economic Portals

State Administration Portal on business issues
Slovenian Business Portal

Any Comment About This Content? Report It to Us.