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Serbia’s Economic Growth Surges to Fastest Since 2008

Serbia’s Economic Growth Surges to Fastest Since 2008

(Bloomberg) --

Serbia’s economic growth accelerated to the quickest pace since late 2008, joining a group of the world’s fastest expanding economies.

Gross domestic product rose 6.1% from a year earlier in the fourth quarter, central bank Governor Jorgovanka Tabakovic told reporters on Wednesday, days ahead of the March 2 planned release. The reading beat a Bloomberg survey of a 4.7% advance.

Serbia’s Economic Growth Surges to Fastest Since 2008

With expansion fueled by government investment, the announcement comes as Serbia readies for parliamentary elections in April. President Aleksandar Vucic, whose party seeks to gain more power, has been eager to highlight economic achievements amid an ongoing demographic outflow.

“While many countries have lowered growth forecasts for their economies, Serbia exceeded all forecasts due to domestic factors, primarily due to higher than projected investments,” Tabakovic said.

Fixed investment, which increased 35% over the past two years, had a three-quarter contribution to overall growth in 2018 and 2019, she said. The fourth-quarter growth will bring full-year economic expansion to 4.2% in 2019.

The central bank, which has left forecasts for 2020 and 2021 economic growth unchanged, doesn’t expect much of an impact from the spreading coronavirus even as China is one of Serbia’s key trade partners, Tabakovic said.

--With assistance from Harumi Ichikura.

To contact the reporter on this story: Gordana Filipovic in Belgrade at gfilipovic@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrea Dudik at adudik@bloomberg.net, Peter Laca

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