Serbia’s economy expanded 2.1% in 2025, according to revised annual accounts, with stronger performance from information and communications and financial services contrasting with a contraction in construction. Gross domestic product reached RSD 10.56 trillion, representing an 8.1% nominal increase. The revised real growth rate was slightly above the previous estimate of 2.0%.
The sectoral composition was more pronounced than the headline revision. Information and communications grew 5.8% in real terms, while financial and insurance activities increased 6.7%. Construction, by comparison, contracted 6.3%. Manufacturing remained the largest individual contributor, accounting for 12.2% of GDP, followed by wholesale and retail trade at 9.9% and information and communications at 8.8%.
ICT and financial services expand their economic role
The 8.8% GDP share of information and communications places the sector increasingly close to Serbia’s largest established service industries. The sector encompasses software development, IT outsourcing, telecommunications, data infrastructure and higher-value engineering and technology services.
Technology businesses can generate comparatively high value added with smaller workforces than many labour-intensive activities, making the sector increasingly relevant as Serbia faces a shrinking labour pool and rising wages. Financial and insurance activities also expanded considerably faster than the overall economy during 2025, covering continued growth in banking, insurance and other financial services.
Manufacturing remains the largest sector
Despite the expansion of services, manufacturing retained its position as Serbia’s largest individual economic sector, contributing 12.2% of GDP. The sector remains important for exports, employment and foreign investment, while also supporting logistics, engineering, energy demand, business services and domestic supplier networks.
Recent investment has included electronics, advanced machinery, automotive technology, semiconductor design and automation, increasing the technological component of industrial activity. The combination of manufacturing and technology services can also support higher value creation per employee as labour costs rise.
Construction records a sharp contraction
Construction was the weakest major sector in the revised 2025 accounts, with real gross value added declining 6.3%. Gross fixed capital formation increased 1.7% in real terms and accounted for 22.8% of GDP, providing a relatively limited increase in investment compared with the scale of Serbia’s project pipeline. Construction activity has subsequently entered a stronger cycle involving Expo 2027, railways, motorways, energy infrastructure, industrial developments and urban projects.
An acceleration in project execution could make construction a larger contributor to economic activity during 2026 and 2027, while increasing the importance of the timing and implementation of major capital projects.
External trade remains central to growth
Serbia’s annual accounts also show the scale of the economy’s integration with international markets. Exports of goods and services represented 53.6% of GDP, while imports accounted for 57.8%. Exports increased 5.7% in real terms during 2025, compared with 7.8% growth in imports.
The structure leaves Serbia exposed to changes in European industrial demand while providing a platform for further export growth. Increasing the domestic value added contained in exported goods and services remains relevant as foreign-owned manufacturing facilities continue to influence Serbia’s export structure. The development of domestic engineering capabilities, technology, suppliers and intellectual property forms part of the broader shift in the composition of economic activity.
Growth accelerates in 2026
Economic activity strengthened during the first half of 2026. Real GDP increased 3.2% year on year in the first quarter and 3.8% in the second quarter, while seasonally adjusted output in the second quarter was 1.5% higher than in the previous three months. The stronger performance followed the relatively subdued growth recorded in 2025. The composition of the acceleration will depend on the performance of construction alongside ICT, financial services, manufacturing and exports, while the current infrastructure investment cycle is adding to economic activity. The revised annual accounts put manufacturing at 12.2% of GDP, while information and communications accounted for 8.8% and financial and insurance activities recorded one of the fastest sectoral growth rates during the year.
