The National Bank of Serbia (NBS), citing data from the Republic Institute of Statistics, has announced a notable increase in industrial production. The primary drivers behind this growth were the processing industry, which saw a year-on-year increase of 10.8 percent, and mining, with a growth rate of 14.9 percent.
However, there was a decline in activity within the energy sector, experiencing a 2.9 percent decrease year-on-year. Nonetheless, within the processing industry, production expanded in 19 out of 24 sectors.
Key contributors to this growth were the manufacturing of metal products, food items, oil derivatives, chemical products, as well as computers, electronic goods, and optical products.
For the first two months of the current year, industrial production has seen a significant year-on-year growth of 7.9 percent.
This positive trend extended into February, observed across service sectors, retail trade, and tourism. Retail trade turnover in February surpassed the previous year’s figures by 8.8 percent, while tourist arrivals increased by 9.2 percent.
In terms of foreign trade, February saw a 6.6 percent year-on-year growth in goods exports and a 4.3 percent growth in imports. The rise in exports was primarily led by the processing industry and agriculture, while imports were driven by investments in labor resources.
