Serbia New Car Sales Decline to 11-Year Low, Dealers Say

Sales of new cars in Serbia declined 25 percent last year to the lowest since 2001 amid a recession and high unemployment, the national association of dealers said.

Sales fell to 23,993 vehicles from a revised 31,900 in 2011, led by Skoda Auto AS and Fiat SpA (F) models, said Milos Petrovic, head of the Serbian Association of Vehicle Importers, in a phone interview. More than 90 percent of the vehicles were imported from the European Union.

Sales fell even as Serbia reduced customs tax to 2.5 percent for most vehicles made in the EU as part of a gradual removal of trade barriers with the bloc it wants to join.

To contact the reporter on this story: Misha Savic in Belgrade at msavic2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James M. Gomez at jagomez@bloomberg.net