SOFIA, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) flowing into Bulgaria increased for the third month in a row in November infusing optimism in the economy, official preliminary data showed on Friday.

FDI in the Balkan country in November 2017, presented according to the directional principle, increased by 32.2 million euros (39.3 million U.S. dollars), compared with a decline of 7.6 million in November 2016, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) said on its website.

In the first 11 months of 2017, FDI in Bulgaria totaled 883.7 million euros, dropping by 21.5 million euros or 2.4 percent year-on-year, the BNB said.

The ratio for January-November 2017 period is much better than in the first eight months of the same year when the FDI amounted to 516.4 million euros and decreased by 608.3 million euros or 54.1 percent on an annual basis.

However, in September last year the monthly FDI in Bulgaria increased by 10.4 million euros compared with a decline of 99.2 million euros in September 2016.

The recovery continued in October 2017 when the FDI increased by 96.6 million euros, compared with a decline of 112.7 million euros in October 2016, BNB data showed.

In 2016, FDI in Bulgaria amounted to 682.8 million euros, down 59.7 percent year-on-year. (1 euro = 1.22 U.S. dollars)