In 2018 Kosovo exported 3 billion more: Drive Serbia from first to fifth

Citizens of Kosovo in 2018 mostly spent on fuel and tobacco. While the total value of goods imported to Kosovo exceeds 3 billion euros.

200m euros have been spent on tobacco, while around 400m euros on fuel.

In addition to these products, Kosovo has imported vehicles, iron and plastic products for the greater value.

Kosovo Customs spokesman Adriatic Stavileci, in an interview for Kosova Preris has declared that in 2018 imports to Kosovo have increased by 11.6 per cent compared to last year.

“This year we've seen an increase in import values, not necessarily increasing the amount, but we've seen an increase of value and we've seen that in 2017 we've had about 2.7 billion imports by the end of November, but in 2018 this has passed the 3 billion, and as long as we're compared to the period itself, then we have an increase of 11.6 percent... The origins are actually varied, whereas the goods that are most imported in Kosovo are fuel fuels, then the vehicles, plastics, iron products, so mainly industrial products. Smoking also has a huge import. We can say that this year's fuel is over 400 million fuels that Kosovars have spent so far on supplies, and in terms of tobacco, we have also collected about 60m euros in tobacco, not counting the 100 per cent tax, meaning that within this year we have spent about 200 million euros in tobacco”, he said.

According to Stavileci until the tax was imposed, Serbia has been the country from Kosovo it has mostly imported. During this year, numerous goods have also entered Kosovo from Germany, Turkey, China and Italy.

“The main countries we import by the end of November actually the first country has been Serbia, but with the application of the safeguard clause we now expect statistics to change in these two months, while statistics reflect the months when we haven't had the safeguard clause, then Germany, Turkey, China, Italy comes. So with a simpler summary we can say that there are CEFTA countries as well as European Union countries including Asia“, Stavileci added.

That import from Serbia has apparently declined, even the statistics of the Kosovo Statistics Agency say.

The head of the Foreign Economic Statistics and Trade Division at the AKS, Ismail Sahiti, has declared that with the tax being imposed on Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia is placed in fifth place as far as import is concerned, while earlier it was the first.

After the establishment of import tax with Serbia has apparently declined, Serbia has been the main site from which Kosovo has imported almost the entire post-war period, has participated with about 15 percent of Kosovo's import has been from Serbia, while from the moment the tax application appears a significant decline, and at the moment only 5.6 per cent of imports comes from Serbia. It has lost its first priority from the first country to fifth place, so for the time being in first place, Turkey is participating 11 percent, Germany 11 percent, from China by 10 percent, and from Albania at 7 percent”, it said.

On the other hand, GAP Institute researcher Nora Jusuf has provided several examples of how the country can become competitive with other countries with products that do not require much investment.

According to her, Kosovo businesses should be informed of how to penetrate the international market more easily.

Kosovo producers or businesses should be notified of investment opportunities or the creations of various factories, which could be more competitive with other countries. We found some very interesting information, for example, 60 percent garlic last year was imported from China and 99 percent of the clouds were imported from China, so there are two products that could easily be cultivated or produced in Kosovo, and because they were an investment opportunity for Kosovo businessmen”, Yusuf added.

Contrary to the move imposed by the Kosovo Government for Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the chairman of the Kosovo Economic Ode, Berat Rukiqi considers greater support needed for local businesses.

We need to see the possibility of supporting sectors where we can be competitive. The first is to identify these sectors, improve policy in general with the job market, allow more formalities and at the same time address the problems that the job market has in relation to skills, change a little way we invest the budget including part of the reductions and see the possibilities of identifying four or five products that can be replaced by other”, Rukiqir said.