AMCHAM SERBIA CHAIRMAN FOR KURIR: 'US investors see Serbia as second home and good place to invest'

"The visit by US companies as part of the trade mission is indeed a signal of better economic relations between Serbia and the United States. A trend of improvement in the economic relations with the US has been noticeable over a longer period of time now. In the last two years, the total commodities exchange between Serbia and the US has grown considerably, while the growth of exports from Serbia has the potential for further improvement of the economic relations," Stefan Lazarević, Chairman of the Board at the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Serbia, said in his interview with Kurir, commenting on whether this week's visit of the US trade mission to Belgrade was a signal that the US would continue to invest in our country.

What areas are US companies most interested in?

"Bearing in mind the makeup of the US mission, we can see that there is an increasing interest of IT companies in Serbia, as well as those in the areas of infrastructure, telecommunications, and energy, which is a strong indicator of a good business environment in Serbia. In recent years, we have been noticing that more and more domestic companies are being acquired by companies from the US, so, taken together, all of this indicates a good direction in the development of the relations between Serbia and the US. US companies have so far invested over four billion dollars in Serbia, and they employ 30,000 people."

To what extent has the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, followed by the war between Russia and Ukraine, affected the readiness of the US investors to invest in the region?

"In the last few months, two US companies have started or expanded their business in Serbia. These are positive examples that speak to the fact that the economy is active and that investors see Serbia as a good place to invest in. We have just completed a survey among the AmCham member companies, and the companies state that in 2023 they will be more cautious regarding new projects. The fact that investments made in regular business will be continued is encouraging and testifies to the fact that the companies will keep investing in order to be ready, once the global situation stabilizes, to pick up where they left off. The wish to invest in ongoing business processes suggests that reductions in the number of employees are not expected."

What advantages does Serbia have with respect to attracting investors?

"Serbia is a country of highly educated people who speak foreign languages very well. A country with a very developed IT and telecommunications infrastructure, a stable political situation, and a very good and favourable taxation policy. The best recommendation for new investors in Serbia is precisely the American Chamber of Commerce company members who have been conducting their business in our market for a number of years and who see Serbia as a second home. So far, these 225 companies have invested over 14 billion euros in Serbia and employ over 100,000 of our citizens."

What should the new Government of Serbia's priorities be in the area of economy? What reforms should be focused on?

"Our response to the global challenges should be the kind of reforms that would make our country an even better place to work and live in: digital transformation; implementing the green agenda aimed at an environmentally clean and energy-efficient Serbia; improving the healthcare system; and improving regional economic collaboration through the Open Balkans initiative, with the focus on further EU integration. These are the four priorities that we believe are crucial in continuing to create a modern business environment. I think it is just these priorities that are the cornerstones of a further sustainable development of our country by modernizing the state and administrative procedures, but also a further creation of the system in which young people want to stay, work, and start a family."

On the regional initiative

'Open Balkans yet to show its potential'

In your opinion, to what extent has the Open Balkans initiative contributed to the economic collaboration and developing connections between Serbia, Albania, and North Macedonia?

"The potential of a wider regional market can only be reached if all the Western Balkans markets participate in the initiative, and if the agreed measures are implemented efficiently and new forms of cooperation are phased in. Recognizing the importance of the initiative, AmCham Serbia, together with the AmCham organizations from the region, has agreed on an intensive collaboration aimed at improving regional integration, with the ultimate goal of a full integration of Serbia and the region in the EU. Among other things, we have initiated a survey among the companies regarding their familiarity with the concrete facilitations for the movement of goods, services, and people, as well as measuring the results of the application of the agreement for the companies within the Open Balkans initiative. The project result will include concrete suggestions for the priority areas of cross-border trade which need to be facilitated within this initiative. We are currently considering what is the most efficient way to present the results and the plan for further action with the aim of reaching full process inclusivity. This is an excellent project which will hopefully show its full potential in the near future."

Boban Karović