Serbian official says car industry begins to recover at Belgrade Car Show

Serbian car market has started to recover, the Serbian economy minister said on Thursday at the opening ceremony of the Belgrade Car Show.

Economy Minister Zeljko Sertic pointed out that Serbia saw an increase in car sales last year, which was the first time in the past eight years. It showed the country is no longer in recession.

"More than 20,000 cars were sold last year, which is very important because it means that the market is starting to recover both in Serbia, Europe and the whole world," Sertic said.

He estimated that the economic reforms that the Serbian government carried out have yielded visible results.

Sertic made the statement at the opening ceremony of the Belgrade Car Show of the Belgrade Fair which would run from March 17 to 23.

The official pointed out the importance of automobile industry for Serbia with the fact that Italian Fiat which produces cars in the Serbian city of Kragujevac, once again topped the list of Serbian exporters with 1.2 billion euros (1.36 billion U.S. dollars) worth of exports last year.

"The Serbian government will continue to create new jobs in the car industry. We have secured the availability of 10,000 new posts in the following two years," Sertic said at the exhibition.

Among the vehicles on of the show are some of the newest models from leading international manufacturers such as Audi A4, BMW X1, Mercedes E class and SUV vehicles GLE and GLC, Bentley GT Continental and Flying Spur, as well as Chinese Great Wall with their models.

Organizers estimated that around 100,000 people will visit the show. Leading importers, distributors and manufacturers of car parts and equipment gathered at the show under the slogan "What makes women happy?"

Besides attractive offers for leasing and the presentation of new car models, visitors can take part in test drives, giveaways and many side events.

Belgrade Car Show has been held every two years since 2006. Endit