Serbian foreign trade and importance of agrarian sector

Abstract

The foreign trade of the Serbian economy is characterized by a large deficit and unfavourable structure. The importance of the agrarian sector in total trade is reflected in the constant positive trade balance and increasing participation, particularly in export. The aim of the paper is to analyze the basic characteristics of foreign trade of Serbia, as well as to point out the importance of the agrarian sector in the period 2005-2014. In the first part of the paper are analyzed trends of export, import, and the level of openness of Serbian economy. In the following part the structure of export and import is discussed, and the concentration index presented, or the Herfindahl-Hirschmann index, as well as the diversification index which indicates the difference between the structure of Serbian export and import and the international average. In addition to these indicators, the revealed comparative advantage index was calculated. The analysis of foreign trade of Serbian overall economy indicates a significant presence of agricultural and food products in its structure, particularly in export, and confirms that the agrarian sector is one of few sectors with a constant surplus. Determined indicators show that the comparative advantage in the overall economy trade of Serbia with the world is achieved in primary products and products of lower processing phase, of which a significant part is from the agrarian sector. Therefore, in the final part of the paper the participation of the agrarian sector in the total foreign trade of Serbia is shown.

Spoljnotrgovinsku razmenu ukupne ekonomije Srbije karakteriše veliki deficit i nepovoljna struktura. Značaj agrarnog sektora u ukupnoj razmeni ogleda se u neprestanom pozitivnom spoljnotrgovinskom saldu i povećavanju učešća, prvenstveno u izvozu. Cilj rada je analiza osnovnih obeležja spoljnotrgovinske razmene Srbije, kao i ukazivanje na značaj agrarnog sektora u periodu 2005-2014. godine. U prvom delu rada analiziran je trend izvoza, uvoza, kao i stepen otvorenosti srpske ekonomije. U nastavku je razmatrana struktura izvoza i uvoza, obračunati su indeksi koncentracije, odnosno Herfindahl-Hirschmann indeks, kao i indeksi diverzifikacije koji ukazuju na razliku između strukture izvoza i uvoza Srbije i svetskog proseka. Pored ovih pokazatelja, obračunat je i indikator otkrivene komparativne prednosti. Analiza spoljnotrgovinske razmene ukupne ekonomije Srbije ukazuje na značajnu zastupljenost poljoprivredno-prehrambenih proizvoda u njenoj strukturi, posebno izvozu, i potvrđuje da agrarni sektor predstavlja jedan od retkih sektora koji konstantno ostvaruje suficit. Komparativne prednosti u razmeni ukupne ekonomije Srbije sa svetom ostvarene su, prvenstveno, kod primarnih proizvoda i proizvoda niže faze prerade, od kojih je značajan deo iz agrarnog sektora.