Serbia's foreign trade is up 4.5 pct to EUR 15.38 bil

BELGRADE – In the January-July 2014 period, Serbia’s foreign trade increased 4.5 percent against a year earlier to EUR 15.381 billion, and the export-import ratio was up from last year’s 69.3 percent to 72.9 percent, the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia (RZS) said in a release on Friday.

From January through July this year, Serbia exported goods worth EUR 6.488 billion, an increase of 7.7 percent compared to the corresponding period last year, while imports amounted to EUR 8.892 billion, up 2.3 percent against the first seven months in 2013.

Trade deficit was EUR 2,404 million, a decrease of 9.9 percent compared to the same period last year.

Looking at Serbia’s exports, the country’s main trade partners were Italy, Germany, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Russian Federation and Montenegro, and on the import side, the main partners were Germany, Italy, Russia, China and Poland.

Foreign trade was greatest with countries with which Serbia has signed free trade agreements. Member-countries of the European Union made up 64.8 percent of Serbia’s total trade.

Serbia’s second most important trade partner is the CEFTA countries. Serbia posted a EUR 851.34 million surplus in trade with them.