Bosnian industry calls for measures to be taken in connection with import quotas from Serbia
The Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina (VTK/STKBiH) has called on the Bosnian authorities to file a complaint with Serbia and the Joint Committee of the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) in connection with Serbia's new steel import quotas.
The quotas come into force on January 1 and apply to rebar, wire rod, and hot-rolled and cold-rolled cold-rolled steel, with a 50% duty levied on imports in excess of the prescribed volume (see Kallanish passim). This measure is valid for six months.
The impact on long products is especially relevant for Bosnia (BiH), home to the largest producer of long products in the Balkans, Nova Zeljezara Zenica, which was once part of ArcelorMittal.
"The quotas introduced by the Serbian government do not correspond to real trade flows, since, as indicated in the Resolution, they were created based on data for the period 2020-2024," VTK/STKBiH notes.
"Having considered the above-mentioned resolution, especially the part of the established quotas that concerns the aforementioned products for Bosnia and Herzegovina, we express concern on behalf of the companies, that is, the exporters of these products to Serbia. Namely, based on VTK/STKBiH data, it is obvious that in 2025, already in the first quarter, exports from Bosnia and Herzegovina exceeded the permitted quarterly quota," he adds.
"It is obvious that the following parameters were not fully taken into account when determining quotas: the total volume of real trade flows, regional distribution models and the real market share of producers and suppliers from Bosnia and Herzegovina," he continues.
This measure also restricts the unhindered duty-free sale of goods in the CEFTA countries, preventing the conclusion of long-term contracts that Bosnian suppliers conclude with Serbian buyers, VTK/STKBiH reports. The detention of trucks at border crossings is currently the most serious problem for Bosnian exporters, as additional quota control procedures by Serbian customs authorities are making detentions longer and this is ongoing.
"The consequences of the delay are already tangible and serious: direct and growing financial costs (downtime of trucks, penalties, additional transportation costs), delays in deliveries to customers in the Republic of Serbia, disruptions in production and construction supply chains, as well as serious damage to the company's reputation. Suppliers from Bosnia and Herzegovina are reliable and predictable partners," concludes VTK/STKBiH.
Author: Adam Smith Austria
Kallanish.com