According to the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, the country’s foreign trade in goods for January–August 2025 reached €49.27 billion, an 8.3% increase compared to the same period last year. Exports rose by 8.6% to €21.76 billion, while imports increased by 8.0% to €27.51 billion, leaving a deficit of €5.76 billion.
The European Union remains Serbia’s largest trading partner, accounting for 58% of total trade, while the CEFTA region ranks second with a trade surplus of €1.94 billion.
Growing trade is reshaping Serbia’s freight market. In the first half of 2025, road haulage carried 63.7% of all goods (tkm), while rail accounted for 15.2% and river transport 14.7%.
Road transport volumes rose slightly by 0.8%, but overall tkm declined by 1%. Rail freight, by contrast, saw a 12.5% drop in volumes and an 11.8% decline in tkm, with rail imports collapsing by almost 35%.
Infrastructure projects are expected to help rebalance this picture. The new Batajnica Intermodal Terminal near Belgrade is now operational, offering additional capacity and new routes. Domestic and international investors continue to develop other intermodal hubs, expanding Serbia’s connectivity with regional and global markets.
The Batajnica Intermodal Terminal, co-financed by the EU and Serbian government, is designed as a bimodal facility linking road and rail on Serbia’s key international corridors. The 82-hectare site includes three rail tracks, four truck lanes, and a container yard with capacity for reefer units and dangerous goods. Road access is provided via the new Belgrade bypass, while a 600-metre rail link connects the site to Corridor X. The project, developed under the IPA programme, will ultimately be managed by a new public entity set up by the Serbian government and City of Belgrade.
Batajnica is already being integrated into wider European networks. In September, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Alpe Adria SpA and Batajnica Interport to establish the “Ausava” corridor, linking Cervignano del Friuli and Belgrade and involving the Port of Trieste. The corridor is expected to facilitate faster and greener transport of goods between Italy and Serbia, further embedding the new terminal in international supply chains.
Organisers of the upcoming Cargo Conference Belgrade note that Serbia’s growing role is already visible in neighbouring countries, one of which saw intermodal traffic at its terminals rise by more than 120% in 2024, partly due to Serbian-linked services.
These changes align with European patterns, where combined transport remains a lifeline for rail. Across the EU, intermodal shipments rose 5.19% in 2024, with ton-kilometres up 8.41%; today, every second freight train is intermodal.
