Serbia to Spend as Much as 12 Billion Euros on Infrastructure
Serbia to Spend as Much as 12 Billion Euros on Infrastructure
(Bloomberg) -- Serbia will invest billions of euros in new homes, energy, transportation and digital infrastructure, President Aleksandar Vucic said on Sunday, as the government seeks to boost economic growth prospects.
“We are in position to easily ensure at least 10 or even 12 billion euros ($13.4 billion) of funding for new investments,” the president said at a news conference in the capital, Belgrade. “We are building more roads and railroads than in the times of Tito,” he added, in a reference to former Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito.
The announcement of new investment in the Balkan state of 7 million people followed Thursday’s surprise rate cut to a record low 2.5% by the Serbian central bank, which opted to support credit and gross domestic product growth amid subdued inflation. Concerns over Serbia’s economic expansion have intensified after the Statistics Office failed to publish its flash growth estimate late last month, citing issues in gathering data.
With GDP growth slowing from January to March compared with a year earlier, and industrial production and exports declining in the first half of the year, there’s a risk full-year growth won’t meet the government’s 3.5% estimate.
The new investment plan may help to ease some of those concerns. Sewerage and water supply systems will also be part of the program, the president told reporters.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jan Bratanic in Ljubljana at jbratanic@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net, John Deane, Tony Halpin
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