Zeljko Jović: Overview of recent monetary and macroeconomic trends in Serbia

Opening remarks by Dr Zeljko Jović, Vice-Governor of the National Bank of Serbia, at the presentation of the Inflation Report - February 2019, Belgrade, 13 February 2019.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed members of the press, dear colleagues,

Welcome to the presentation of the February Inflation Report. We will give you an overview of the current macroeconomic developments, our new inflation and economic activity projections, as well as monetary policy decisions in the period since the previous Report.

To begin with, I would like to stress that the year 2018 was marked by positive economic trends. According to the preliminary data of the Serbian Statistical Office, GDP growth equalled 4.4%, which is its highest increase in ten years. Though the second half of the year saw a slowdown in external demand growth, domestic factors are to be credited for the high growth rate. Here I primarily have in mind the improvement of the business climate, favourable financial conditions, positive labour market trends, as well as the accelerated implementation of infrastructure projects. Growth forecast for this year has been kept at 3.5%, while in the following years we expect growth to pick up further to around 4%, resting on sustainable grounds.