Central bank governor: Serbia maintained strong economic growth

At a meeting of the Swiss Constituency in Washington DC, Tabakovic said that since last May, inflation returned within the target corridor of 3±1.5 percent, and by the year’s end it is expected to be close to the target midpoint, the Governor’s Office said.

According to Tabakovic, Serbia has preserved the relative stability of the exchange rate of the dinar against the euro and secured record high foreign exchange (FX) reserves, more than twice their pre-pandemic level in 2019.

“We have considerably increased our gold reserves, which now account for around 15 percent of our FX reserves, while the share of NPLs has been brought down to below 2.5 percent, their lowest level on record,” Tabakovic’s Office quoted her as saying.

The governor noted that Serbia also had a record year in terms of FDI inflow, which amounted to EUR 5.2 bn, the highest in Western Balkan countries.

“The latest periodic review on Serbia, published by Standard & Poor’s in early April, shows that Serbia has maintained strong prospects for GDP growth in the medium term and that the built buffers provide a strong backstop against potential shocks. In conditions of significantly deteriorating projections of global growth prospects, such estimates by the rating agency, together with the expected continuation of high growth rates, are a reflection of confidence in the economic policy pursued in Serbia,” noted Governor Tabakovic.