Serbia’s current account deficit narrowed to 1.81 billion euro ($1.95 billion) last year, from 4.16 billion euro in 2022, reflecting an improved energy balance and robust growth in manufacturing and services exports, the central bank, NBS, said on Wednesday.
The deficit shrank to 2.6% of GDP thanks to enhanced export capabilities, guaranteed energy security, and reduced global energy costs, NBS governor Jorgovanka Tabakovic said in a statement.
“According to our projection, the anticipated pick-up in the investment cycle and the associated import of equipment and intermediate goods, which will be offset greatly by the rise in export capacities and recovery of the euro area’s external demand, will result in the current account deficit trending at around 4–5% of GDP this year and in the medium term, which is sufficient to ensure the country’s external sustainability,” Tabakovic said, adding that NBS projects the gap will be fully covered by the net inflow of foreign direct investment in the following years.
The deficit in trade of goods narrowed 29% to 6.6 billion euro in 2023, while the surplus in trade of services rose by 30% to 3.0 billion euro, the central bank said in a separate data release published on Wednesday.
The gap in primary income widened 29% to 3.86 billion euro last year, whereas the surplus in secondary income shrank 4% to 5.6 billion euro.
In November alone, Serbia’s current account gap widened 40% on the year to 695 million euro.
Source Link