Momirovic: Serbia needs to sign FTA with China as soon as possible

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of Internal and External Trade Tomislav Momirovic said on Friday the government was investing maximum efforts to finalise as soon as possible the process of concluding a free trade agreement with China that would help further progress and economic prosperity in Serbia and bring good results in the future.

Momirovic, who is the Serbian co-chair of a Serbia-China intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation, said this after a meeting with Chinese Ambassador to Belgrade Chen Bo.

"Our enormous chance for additional growth of economic activity and employment lies in an increase of the volume of trade with our traditional political partners, and China is definitely one of them," Momirovic said, noting that China was Serbia's second-largest trade partner.

He said Serbian exports to China had increased by 15 times in the past five years and that there were realistic foundations for boosting them further, the Ministry of Internal and External Trade said in a statement.

He said the trade volume in the first nine months of this year totalled 4.7 bln dollars, up by 23.8 pct y-o-y.

"Serbia is not giving up on its economic objectives and our economy will continue to grow, even amid the current complex foreign policy circumstances, and further strengthening of the strategic partnership with China will open up unlimited possibilities for progress of our country and for our exports," Momirovic said, thanking the ambassador for China's sincere support to further infrastructure and economic development in Serbia.