Serbia and Croatia more important than Russia for the German market - German trade with Russia is declining, with Balkan countries it is increasing.
Russia was once one of Germany's most important trading partners, but since the invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of EU sanctions, trade has been in steady decline. With the decline of the Russian market, Eastern European countries have become increasingly important for the German economy. After the US, China, the Netherlands and France - Poland has become the fifth most important partner with a total exchange of over 90 billion euros. Among Eastern European countries, Russia is now only in 12th place, surpassed by Serbia in 9th place and Croatia in 11th place, the German economy's "Eastern Commission" reported.
Trade with Serbia amounts to almost 890 million euros - an increase of almost 17% compared to last June. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announces major investments in the economy, but given the protests, German partners are unsure how to assess the country's political stability.
Serbia's goal to join the Single European Payments Area (SEPA) in 2026 will enable faster and cheaper payment transactions. Thus
Serbia remains an attractive market for Germany. Although political uncertainty persists, German companies still see Serbia as a potential destination. They have invested in numerous projects in recent years. Around 900 companies with German capital employ around 80,000 workers.
Meanwhile, trade with Croatia grew by over 8% through June this year compared to the same period last year. A serious economic risk for the Croatian economy, which is heavily based on consumption, remains inflation, which remains high. However
Croatia, although it has a large trade deficit with Germany - it exported goods and services worth 220 million euros and imported almost 485 million. A large part of the export growth is due to the Croatian pharmaceutical industry.
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