The Economies of the Western Balkans are More Competitive in the EU Single Market

The economies of the Western Balkans are closely connected with the European Union, and the promptest inclusion of this region in the single market of the Union would spur business development and boost the competitiveness of economies and companies, said Marko Čadež, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia.

At the annual online meeting with the presidents of the chambers of commerce of Austria, Slovakia, Italy, Croatia, and others, Čadež reminded of the proposal of the Western Balkan business community for faster integration of the region into the EU by creating the European Economic Community of Southeast Europe and accelerating the process towards full membership. According to Čadež, that would bring great benefits to the economies of the Western Balkans, but also to the EU.

The President of the CCIS points out that the European Union is the main foreign trade partner of Serbia with 75% of Serbian exports going to this market, the economies are compatible and closely connected with shared risks and challenges such as energy crisis, rising food prices, raw materials, inflation ...

Mihailo Vesović, Director of the Sector for Internationalization of CCIS, reminded that Serbia has maintained macroeconomic stability, employment, and level of investments in turbulent times. He added that the CCIS was strong support to the economy both during the pandemic and during the Ukrainian crisis.

"Immediately after the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, we launched a Call Center for the companies, we managed to pull out a large number of drivers and trucks that were in Ukraine at the end of February. "Every day we provide important information to companies from the situation at border crossings to financial analysis," said Vesović. 

Our priority is to help companies position themselves in new markets such as the Middle East and North Africa, and our goal is to sign as many free trade agreements with as many countries as possible so that the placement of our products would not be burdened by high customs duties.