Ten years of inflation targeting in Serbia

Abstract

Monetary strategy of inflation targeting in Serbia was unofficially introduced in September 2006. The National Bank of Serbia has faced the numerous challenges that are typical for transition countries which apply the same strategy. At the start of inflation targeting, inflation was reduced to a single-digit number, which characterises most other countries. However, the volatility of inflation during the implementation of the strategy has been extremely high, mainly caused by the changes of processed and unprocessed food prices. Moreover, for a country with a high degree of euroisation, such as Serbia, the exchange rate plays an important role in the movement of inflation. Controlling the trends of the exchange rate in order to maintain the stability of inflation is contrary to the assumptions of inflation targeting. However, it can be concluded that despite all the obstacles faced by the NBS, inflation targeting is the optimal choice of a monetary strategy.