Brnabic: FTA with China to bring even more investors to Serbia

BELGRADE - Serbian PM Ana Brnabic said on Friday a planned FTA with China would help Serbia attract even more investors from around the world and boost the competitiveness of Serbian companies.

Brnabic was responding to a question from reporters whether the agreement could spell trouble for Serbian businesses as they would have to compete with Chinese-made goods.

"Our exports to China have risen by 152 times in the past ten years, tripling in the past three years. I believe in the competitiveness of our economy and that, with a FTA, we can raise that by at least 152 more times. I believe in the principles of an open economy and that, when you have an open economy, domestic enterprises become increasingly competitive," she said.

"But when you have protectionist measures like some countries now have towards China because they are unable to compete with Chinese companies, that additionally undermines the competitiveness of their companies and economies," Brnabic noted.

She added that she was supportive of free competition as it was good for the Serbian economy and that the free trade deal would help attract more foreign investors from Europe, the US and around the world because they would be able to market their products in China.