The President of the NBS Board of Governors, Nebojsa Savic, told RTS that Serbia went through a crisis without endangered liquidity. The basis of the new measures should be directed towards the private sector and the sector of small and medium enterprises, because they are suffering the biggest blow, believes Professor Savic.
The international agency “Standard and Poor’s” kept the credit rating of Serbia at the level of BB +, confirming the stable prospects for its further increase in the following period.
As it is stated, the agency emphasizes the importance of the measures taken by the Government and the National Bank by adopting a package of economic measures worth 11 percent of GDP in order to mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic.
Visiting the RTS daily, Professor Nebojsa Savic said that it was good that we kept the credit rating.
He reminded that he recently confirmed “Fitch”, so it is a combination of circumstances in the world.
“We had crisis elements related to COVID, and then the reaction of the countries – this is a confirmation that the measures taken in Serbia were good and to give results,” Savic said.
The message of international investors is that the credit rating in Serbia is favorable. According to him, the next step is to be investment attractive.
He says that this is a message to investors that Serbia is a good destination.
When it comes to economic measures, Savic says that the measures were taken in our country first, directly after the measures taken by the leading central banks – these were monetary policy measures, lowering the reference interest rate and increasing liquidity.
Professor Savic pointed out that we went through a crisis without endangered liquidity.
“The other thing was to act through fiscal measures, covering the minimum wages and tax relief, now we are nearing the end of the measures, there were no major layoffs, three months are coming to an end and now it is necessary to adjust to new circumstances,” Savic underlined.
The basis of the new measures should be directed towards the private sector and the sector of small and medium enterprises, because they are suffering the biggest blow, believes Professor Savic.
Entrepreneurship incentives for small and medium enterprises are crucial to be conceived at this time, Savic points out. There are different ideas, but the measures will still have to be in one part related to liquidity.
Savic notes that we now have two things: first, how long this will last and whether there will be another blow and in what form.
The relationship between the health and economic system is shifting, because, as Savic says, we cannot be closed.
The message to the private sector is that Savic says that some will survive, some have a new chance, new businesses, and some have to seriously consider whether their business has a perspective.
The world has changed, people live differently, how restaurants will function and how tourist agencies will work, Savic wonders.
With the development of the digital world, the most propulsive sector in the world were travel agencies. The biggest increase in income was there, Savic reminds.
“To a certain extent, the help of the state is significant, but now the private sector must slowly think about what their business model will look like,” Savic concluded, RTS reports.
