On October 17th, China's Minister of Commerce, Wang Wentao, and Serbia's Minister of Internal and Foreign Trade, Momičić, signed the "Free Trade Agreement between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Serbia" on behalf of their respective governments.

        This is the first free trade agreement that China has signed with a Central and Eastern European country, marking China's 22nd free trade agreement and Serbia becoming China's 29th free trade partner. The signing of the China-Serbia Free Trade Agreement is an important step to implement the consensus of the leaders of both countries. It represents another significant practice in expanding a high-standard, global network of free trade zones and is also an important achievement of the third Belt and Road International Cooperation Summit Forum.

        Negotiations for the China-Serbia Free Trade Agreement began in April 2023 and were substantially completed by the end of September. After the agreement is signed, both parties will go through their respective domestic legal approval procedures to facilitate the early implementation of the agreement.

Zero tariff products for both sides will reach 90%

The China-Serbia Free Trade Agreement focuses on arrangements related to goods trade and has the following key features:

High Level of Liberalization: China and Serbia will mutually eliminate tariffs on 90% of tariff lines, with over 60% of them being immediately tariff-free upon the agreement's entry into force. The proportion of import values for the final list of duty-free items for both sides will be around 95%.

Wide Product Coverage: Serbia will include in the duty-free list items that China places particular importance on, such as automobiles, photovoltaic components, lithium batteries, communication equipment, machinery, refractory materials, and some agricultural and aquatic products. The tariffs on these products will gradually decrease from the current 5% to 20% to zero. China, on the other hand, will incorporate items of interest to Serbia, like generators, electric motors, tires, beef, wine, nuts, into the duty-free list, and tariffs on these products will also be gradually reduced from the current 5% to 20% to zero.

Streamlined Measures: Both sides will deepen customs cooperation, enhance information exchange, communication coordination, and specify details on simplifying trade procedures, risk management, transparency, advance rulings, "authorized economic operator" systems, cooperation, and consultations. Of particular note is the introduction of self-declaration of origin, which facilitates benefits for businesses.

          The advancement of trade liberalization and facilitation between China and Serbia not only benefits the expansion of bilateral trade but also promotes investment cooperation and industrial chain integration, allowing both sides to leverage their respective comparative advantages and enhance their international competitiveness collectively.

The total bilateral trade value for the first eight months was close to 20 billion yuan

         The head of the International Department of the Ministry of Commerce introduced that Serbia is an important partner in China's co-construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative. In 2022, the bilateral trade volume between China and Serbia reached 3.56 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 10.1%. Through the Free Trade Agreement, China and Serbia will achieve a high level of mutual openness, establish new institutional arrangements for bilateral economic and trade cooperation, create a more favorable, convenient, transparent, and stable business environment for businesses from both countries, and inject new momentum into promoting the high-quality development of the "Belt and Road" initiative and deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Serbia.

         Customs data shows that from January to August this year, the total import and export value between China and Serbia reached 19.8 billion Chinese yuan, accumulating a year-on-year growth of 21.9%. Among them, China's exports to Serbia amounted to 12 billion Chinese yuan, marking a 19.5% year-on-year increase, while imports from Serbia were 7.8 billion Chinese yuan, representing a 25.7% year-on-year increase.

Cooperation will be strengthened in various other fields

       According to the China-Serbia Free Trade Agreement, in the investment and service sectors, both China and Serbia have agreed to cooperate in promoting investment and facilitating investment. This cooperation includes sharing and exchanging investment information, improving the transparency of the investment environment, and simplifying application and approval procedures. Additionally, in accordance with the World Trade Organization's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), both parties will make efforts to achieve progressive liberalization and market opening in the field of services trade, with the goal of reaching a services trade liberalization agreement between them.

       In the area of intellectual property protection, both parties will adhere to the principles and provisions of the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). They will strengthen cooperation in the field of intellectual property protection through coordination and negotiation.

       In the competition sector, both parties have established rules to be followed based on the recognition of the independence of competition law enforcement. Furthermore, they have agreed to enhance cooperation in the field of health and traditional Chinese medicine.