Bulgarian emigration to western Europe had caused a decrease in available workers, forcing employers to look for workers in Asia, Italian Osservatoriobalcani said.

Many companies, especially in the textile industry, were searching for workers in Asia, but also in Moldova, Macedonia and Serbia. Salaries offered were about 250 leva.

Later this year, about 500 workers from Hanoi and Vietnam were expected to arrive in Bulgaria, Osservatoriobalcani said.

According to the Bulgarian Association of Textile Producers and Importers the textile industry employs 163 000 workers. However, after joining the EU in January 2007, Bulgarian workers have been looking for better paid jobs abroad.

In Rousse, for example, people preferred to cross the border and work in Romania where the salaries were higher, or leave for western Europe, Osservatoriobalcani  said. This prompted companies to start recruiting workers from as far away as Vietnam.