According to the data Republic Institute for Statistics (RZS) until September of this year, Serbia imported the most from China, as much as 481,6 million dollars worth of goods, and the largest partner in export is Germany – 363,6 million dollars. China will only appear in the top five largest foreign trade partners in 2021, while Germany is in first place.
In 2023, trade in goods with the EU accounted for 60 percent of Serbia's total trade in goods, and China is the second largest trade partner of Serbia, reports Europa.
Although Serbia increased its foreign trade trade by 2024 percent in the first nine months of 3,9, the growth of the trade deficit increased by 20,4 percent compared to the same period last year, according to the RZS report.
Among the largest trading partners, Serbia records the largest deficit with China - as much as 316,5 million dollars from January to September 2024. With Germany, with which Serbia annually exchanges the most goods, the deficit is 89,6 million dollars for the same period.
The most important foreign trade partners in September 2024 in exports are Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Italy and Romania, while for imports they are China, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Poland. already wrote.
For the sake of easier trade, Serbia and China signed the Free Trade Agreement on July 1, 2024, which exempted about 60 percent of goods from customs duties.
On the other hand, although the European Union allows countries that are not members to carry out financial transactions with the EU more easily through the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), Serbia is still not part of SEPA.
The biggest benefit of SEPA would be a significant reduction in commission costs. The National Bank of Serbia says that the process of harmonizing domestic banking systems with SEPA standards has been ongoing since 2014, and that the only thing waiting is the green light from the European Union, reports Euronews.
Bloomberg reports that the latest statements of the Serbian political leadership indicated that the entry into SEPA could take two months compared to the originally planned deadline - January 1, 2025.
An alternative for the EU
In the December edition of the MAT (Macroeconomic Analysis and Trends), the Serbian Chamber of Commerce states that "Serbia found an alternative to subdued demand from the EU this year on the markets of China and Turkey." If that had not happened, in the first nine months we would not have seen a 1,9 percent increase in merchandise exports, but a 1,9 percent drop (merchandise exports would have been lower by 921 million euros)."
According to the same data, the increase in exports to China increased by 65 percent (from September 2023 to September 2024), and to Turkey by 80 percent.
When it comes to investments, the EU for you website states that in the last ten years, the European Union has invested four billion euros in grants and seven billion euros in soft loans.
On the other hand, according to data from the National Bank of Serbia, the total amount of foreign direct investments from China in the period from 2010 to 2023 amounted to 5,5 billion euros, and Nova Ekonomija already wrote about it in more detail.
The value of the exports of the 15 largest exporters from Serbia in 2023 amounted to seven billion euros, of which a third of that amount was achieved by Chinese companies that sell copper, gold and steel on foreign markets, reports Bloomberg.
Among those companies is China Railway International Co Ltd, which together with China Communications Construction Company Ltd. worked on the reconstruction of the canopy in Novi Sad, which collapsed on November 1 and killed 15 people on that occasion, and which, according to the data of the Agency for Business Registers, is the 19th most profitable company in Serbia in 2023.
Another Chinese company operating in Serbia is Linglong International, a tire manufacturing company operating in Zrenjanin. N1 reports that the German company MAN Truck & Bus suspended the purchase of tires from this factory in November, after several years of allegations about the exploitation of workers in this factory and possible human trafficking.
Source: Bloomberg
