The total merchandise trade of Serbia for the period January-October 2023 amounted to:
– 58,781.3 million USD, an increase of 0.5% compared to the same period the previous year.
– 54,441.1 million EUR, a decrease of 1.6% compared to the same period the previous year.
Exports totaled 25,879.0 million USD, representing a growth of 7.2% compared to the same period the previous year. Imports amounted to 32,902.3 million USD, a decrease of 4.3% compared to the same period the previous year.
In terms of exports in EUR, the value reached 23,956.3 million, indicating a growth of 4.9% compared to the same period the previous year. Imports had a value of 30,454.8 million EUR, representing a decrease of 6.1% compared to the same period the previous year.
The trade deficit amounts to 7,023.3 million USD, showing a 31.3% decrease compared to the same period the previous year. In EUR, the deficit is 6,498.5 million, a decrease of 32.4% compared to the same period the previous year.
During October 2023, Serbia’s main trading partners for exports were:
1. Germany (3,615.8 million EUR)
2. Bosnia and Herzegovina (1,673.9 million EUR)
3. Italy (1,499.9 million EUR)
4. Hungary (1,301.0 million EUR)
5. Romania (1,176.0 million EUR)
6. Montenegro (1,029.8 million EUR)
7. China (951.8 million EUR)
8. Russian Federation (939.4 million EUR)
9. Czech Republic (904.7 million EUR)
10. Croatia (881.8 million EUR)
11. Bulgaria (809.7 million EUR)
12. North Macedonia (793.7 million EUR)
13. Poland (744.8 million EUR)
14. France (643.4 million EUR)
15. Slovenia (605.6 million EUR).
Regarding imports during the same period, the main partners were:
1. Germany (3,995.3 million EUR)
2. China (3,730.9 million EUR)
3. Italy (2,217.0 million EUR)
4. Turkey (1,408.2 million EUR)
5. Russian Federation (1,395.9 million EUR)
6. Hungary (1,212.9 million EUR)
7. Poland (980.2 million EUR)
8. Romania (905.6 million EUR)
9. Bosnia and Herzegovina (869.7 million EUR)
10. Austria (847.7 million EUR)
11. France (846.7 million EUR)
12. Czech Republic (788 million EUR)
The export coverage of imports in Serbia is 78.7%, which is higher than the coverage in the same period of the previous year, when it was 70.2%.
Regionally, the largest share in Serbia’s exports is held by the Vojvodina Region (33.2%), followed by the Belgrade Region (24.0%), the Šumadija and Western Serbia Region (20.8%), and the South and East Serbia Region (19.6%). About 2.4% of exports are unclassified by territory.
The Belgrade Region has the largest share in imports (43.0%), followed by the Vojvodina Region (33.3%), the Šumadija and Western Serbia Region (13.2%), and the South and East Serbia Region (8.5%). Approximately 2.0% of imports are unclassified by territory. Data for the Kosovo and Metohija Region is not available.
It should be noted that export and import data by regions are based on the domicile of the goods’ owner at the time of accepting the customs declaration. This means that goods owners can be producers, users, exporters, or importers. This fact should be taken into account when interpreting regional data. For example, the import of oil and gas is largely attributed to the Vojvodina and Belgrade Regions, as these are energy resources for the entire territory of Serbia.
In terms of the structure of export products by purpose, the largest share is held by reproductive products at 62.0% ($16,038.4 million USD), followed by consumer goods at 25.9% ($6,708.5 million USD), and equipment at 12.1% ($3,131.2 million USD).
Unclassified goods by purpose account for 0.0% ($1.0 million USD). As for the structure of imports by product purpose, reproductive products have the largest share at 56.0% ($18,432.7 million USD), followed by consumer goods at 19.5% ($6,412.5 million USD), and equipment at 11.8% ($3,887.4 million USD). Unclassified goods by purpose account for 12.7% ($4,169.7 million USD).
Regarding the main foreign trade partners individually, in terms of exports, Germany (3,615.8 million EUR), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1,673.9 million EUR), Italy (1,499.9 million EUR), Hungary (1,301.0 million EUR), and Romania (1,176.0 million EUR) were the top partners. In terms of imports, Germany (3,995.3 million EUR), China (3,730.9 million EUR), Italy (2,217.0 million EUR), (1,408.2 million EUR), and the Russian Federation (1,395.9 million EUR) were the top trading partners for Serbia in terms of imports.
The total foreign trade volume was highest with countries that have free trade agreements with Serbia. Member countries of the European Union accounted for 59.6% of the total trade. The second most important partners are the CEFTA countries, with whom Serbia has a trade surplus of 2,492.3 million USD, mainly driven by exports of electricity, cereals and cereal products, oil and oil derivatives, beverages, and road vehicles.
During the observed period, Serbia’s exports amounted to 4,023.3 million USD, while imports amounted to 1,531.0 million USD. The import coverage by exports was 262.8%. In EUR, exports were valued at 3,722.2 million EUR, and imports at 1,418.3 million EUR (resulting in a surplus of 2,303.9 million EUR and import coverage by exports of 262.4%).
The largest trade deficit occurred in trade with China (due to imports of mobile phones for network stations and laptops). This was followed by deficits with Turkey, Italy, Iraq, the Russian Federation, Germany, Belgium, Norway, Austria, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Kazakhstan, France, Slovenia, Switzerland, and Greece.
According to the sections of the Standard International Trade Classification (SITC), the top five sections accounted for 32.8% of total exports, while the top five sections accounted for 25.2% of total imports. The section of unclassified goods, which includes goods in customs warehousing and free zones, had a share of 12.8% in total imports.
The top five sections with the highest share in exports were: electrical machinery and appliances (3,256.0 million USD), power machinery and devices (1,493.8 million USD), metal ores and scrap (1,448.5 million USD), electric energy (1,199.9 million USD), and rubber products not elsewhere mentioned (1,085.4 million USD). The top five sections with the highest share in imports were: electrical machinery and appliances (2,171.9 million USD), petroleum and petroleum derivatives (2,098.4 million USD), road vehicles (1,444.8 million USD), medical and pharmaceutical products (1,287.6 million USD), and industrial machinery for general use, n.e.s (1,276.4 million USD).
Sign up for business updates & specials
