A shift to the real economy and industry is a prerequisite for economic recovery of both transition countries and EU member states, estimated panelists at the 2013 Kopaonik Business Forum on Wednesday.
Professor at the Belgrade-based Faculty of Economics Dragan Djuricin underscores that a radical change is needed in economic policies, as the model dedicated to inflation control has not proved effective.
Industrial policies should lead, and macroeconomic ones follow them, the professor said. According to Djuricin, such a model of economic policy is needed that would constitute a shift to the real economy, taking into account the affluent financial sector that should be utilized for reindustrialization process.
The reindustrialization process is the right way for the Serbian economy to regain competitiveness, Djuricin said, adding that a room for new investments must be found. The sectors that constitute comparative advantages should be utilized – energy, infrastructure, agriculture, logistics. Serbia should turn to the countries that are experiencing an economic upswing, he said.
President of the Croatian Association of Economists Ljubo Jurcic says that the European Union must start thinking in a different way and turn to industry, as that is the way to stabilize the situation.
Fiscal and monetary stabilization are a good framework, but if it is not filled with industry, a crisis follows, he noted.
According to Jurcic, the errors made by transition countries arise from the fact that they only adopt norms and EU directives, forgetting that the states that have been EU members for quite long are also facing big economic problems.
He says that Serbia and Croatia are facing a similar economic situation, underlining that “Croatia’s tourism revenue would come in handy for Serbia, and Serbia’s industrial one for Croatia.”
Professor at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade Dragan Malinic identified profitability as the key issue of Serbian economy.
Without a profitable economy, there is no economic growth, competitiveness and new technologies, Malinic said.
Source Tanjug
