The Impact of FDI on the Economic Growth of Serbia

This paper analyzes the impact of foreign direct investment on the economic growth of the Republic of Serbia. The aim is to analyze the effects of the economic crisis on foreign direct investment impact on the economic performance of the Serbian economy. This paper analyzes the period of 2000 - 2014, using the Inward FDI Performance Index and Pearson’s coefficient of simple linear correlation. The period before the economic crises (2000-2007) and the period after the beginning of the economic crisis (2008-2014) are analyzed separately, in order to observe the linear correlation between FDI and economic growth. The results of the research speak in favor of the existence of a strong and statistically significant correlation between FDI and observed macroeconomic indicators in the period of 2000-2007. The second sub-period was characterized by an absence correlation between FDI inflows and all the observed macroeconomic indicators. The results for the period of 2008-2014 can be explained by the effects of the global crisis on the Serbian economy and the deterioration of all macroeconomic indicators in the given period. Effects of the crisis on the Serbian economy were very strong.