Strong FDI Figures
Since year 2001, Serbia has attracted over $20 billion of inward foreign direct investment.
Since the onset of economic reforms, Serbia has grown into one of the premier investment locations in Central and Eastern Europe. A list of leading foreign investors is topped by world-class companies and banks such as FIAT, Telenor, Stada, US Steel, Michelin, Gazprom, Siemens, Intesa Sanpaolo and many others.
Serbia's strong FDI track-record is substantiated by internationally recognized awards for local Greenfield investors. Between 2004 and 2006, Greenfield projects in Serbia were awarded by OECD as the largest investments of this type in South East Europe. The first Award was presented to Ball Packaging Europe (headquartered in USA), followed by METRO Cash & Carry (Germany), and Israeli Africa-Israel Corporation/Tidhar Group for their Airport City Belgrade real estate project.
FDI BY COUNTRIES
In terms of the country structure, investors from the European Union top the list, accounting for about 70% of the total FDI influx. The leading spot on the country list is held by Austria, followed by Greece, Norway, the Netherlands and Germany, while major investor countries also include Italy, Slovenia, the Russian Federation, France and Luxembourg.
The actual amount of U.S. investment is significantly higher than the official figure due to their companies investing primarily through European affiliates. This also holds for Belgium, Denmark, Israel, and a number of other countries.
FDI BY INDUSTRIES
Over the past six years, service sectors have proven to be the most attractive to international investors. Banking and insurance recorded the largest FDI inflow of $5.8 billion. Manufacturing industries held the 2nd spot with $3.9 billion, followed by real estate and renting, transport and telecommunications and trade.
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