REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
- No tags were found...
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
CEFTA-2006 TRADE <strong>COOPERATION</strong><br />
in the market value of equities and commodities. Moreover, the de-leveraging of financial<br />
institutions further accelerated the liquidity crisis and caused a decrease in international<br />
trade. World political leaders, national ministers of finance and central bank directors<br />
coordinated their efforts to reduce fears, but the crisis continued.<br />
For Republic of Serbia, CEFTA 2006 Agreement entered into force on 24. October 2007.<br />
The Agreement stipulates that no import customs shall be increased nor the new ones will<br />
be imposed other than those prescribed by the existing bilateral free trade agreements<br />
between parties. Also, the Agreement stipulates accumulation of products origin, meaning<br />
that products exported from Serbia are considered of Serbian origin if integrated materials<br />
are originating from any other CEFTA country, European Community, Iceland, Norway,<br />
Switzerland (including Liechtenstein) or Turkey, provided that such products have<br />
undergone sufficient processing (where the value added there is greater than the value of<br />
the materials used) in Serbia (SIEPA).<br />
In order to better explain what CEFTA 2006 has brought, it is necessary to recall the<br />
characteristics of mutual trade between the agreement’s signatory countries. Intraregional<br />
trade as a share of total trade with the world differed from country to country – from 0.2%<br />
(Moldavia) to 35% (Bosnia and Hercegovina). Also, there was a high convergence in the<br />
export supply (labor and resource-intensive goods, low added values, low growth rates<br />
of demand on the international market). Each individual CEFTA country already had a<br />
high share of trade with the countries of the European Union, 50-80%, in which Italy and<br />
Germany were dominant.<br />
With the intention of introducing rules of behavior in trade relations, CEFTA 2006<br />
was supplemented by separate amendments that regulated certain areas and specific<br />
procedures, all toward the goal of its simplest possible implementation. 5 The free trade<br />
regime encompassed all industrial products and 90% of agricultural products, while for the<br />
remaining 10% the member countries could retain certain protection measures until 2010,<br />
in accordance with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The free trade zone<br />
was to be formed by December 31, 2010. 6 Certain areas were more precisely regulated and<br />
deadlines for harmonization were defined.<br />
The overall foreign trade in the Republic of Serbia, for the period of January - December<br />
2008 amounted to USD 33,972 million, which was a 24.1% increase, compared to the same<br />
period in 2007. The value of export amounted to USD 10,973 million, which was a 24.3%<br />
increase when compared to the same period in 2007, while the value of imports amounted<br />
to USD 22,999 million, which was a 23.9% increase relative to the same period in 2007.<br />
The deficit amounted to USD 12,026 million, which was an increase of 23.6% in relation<br />
to the same period in 2007. The export - import ratio equaled 47.7% and was lower if<br />
compared to the same period in 2007 when it was 47.6% (see chart 1).<br />
5 For further information, see internet page: Agreement on the Amendment of and Accession to the Central<br />
European Free Trade Agreement: http://www.stabilitypact.org/trade/Cefta%20Agreement%20Amendment%20<br />
of%20and%20Accession%20to%20the%20Central%20European%20Free%20Trade%20Agreement%20-%20<br />
Preamble.pdf, 22/11/2007.<br />
6 For further information, see internet page: CEFTA 2006: http://www.stabilitypact.org/trade/documents/trade-<br />
FINAL-joint%20declaration.pdf, 22/11/2007.<br />
121