This paper aims to analyse macroeconomic and institutional empirical determinants of growth of NPL ratios. Research is focused on selected CEEC and SEE countries in the period 2006- 2013. For our analysis we use static panel model approach with the logarithm of share of NPLs to total loans as a dependent variable. As independent variables we used a combination of country-specific macroeconomic and financial indicators which are commonly used in reference literature, as well as relevant institutional variables. Our results show that there is a negative relationship between increases in GDP and rise of the NPL ratio. Along with GDP, foreign currency loans ratio and level of exchange rate are positively related with the increase of NPL ratio. This confirms the expectation that countries where domestic currency is not the main medium of credit placements will have larger problems with the level of NPLs, which is even more pronounced in periods of domestic currency depreciation. In the presented models, the inflation rate is reported as statistically insignificant for sample countries. In the group of institutional variables, only financial market level of development is reported as statistically significant in relation to the level of NPL - with a more developed financial market the level of NPLs should be lower.

Mullins model of FDI, Serbian macroeconomic performances, Global competitiveness index, The announcement-timing puzzle, F21, P20,

The aim of the paper is to identify the main factors which contributed to decline of profitability in Serbian banking sector during the period of global economic crisis. There are presented different theories of banking sector profitability and results of scientifically significant empirical researches from economic literature. Following ratios were used as measure of profitability: return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE), net interest gain to total revenue, net fees and commissions gain to total revenue, and net pre-tax profit/loss to total revenue ratio. The profitability was analyzed for the whole Serbian banking sector in the period 2008-2012 and particularly for the 15 largest banks according to total assets value in 2012. The empirical analysis indicated that one of the most important factors contributing to high amounts of losses of commercial banks in the previous period includes an increase of net operating expenses, especially expenses on account of a write-off of nonperforming loans (NPL). Furthermore, there were analyzed the dynamics of interest rates and interest spread as a factor with certain impact on profitability of banks. Finally, it is estimated that the prospects for intensive growth of profitability in the banking sector of Serbia in the mid-term are poor.

No abstract

After the devastation of the Second World War, the federal units of the former Yugoslavia were on their way to catching up with the Western Europe, with different degrees of success. In fact, Yugoslavia was considered a success story among the socialist economies due to its specific self-management system. Nevertheless, among the Federal units that later became independent states, regional differences in development level increased, in spite of the proclaimed policy to narrow them. Enough time has passed since the wars of the breakup and the economic transition to check if this divergence is continuing under a capitalist market system, now that all the countries are on the path to the European Union (EU) accession. The paper tests the convergence hypothesis among the states of the former Yugoslavia in terms of Human Development Index (HDI), as a more complex indicator of country development than GDP per capita. The results of two different approaches to test for the presence of β (beta) and σ (sigma) convergence suggest that the gap between the states of former Yugoslavia is closing, albeit at a slow rate. Given that convergence is slow, the active EU policies aimed at hastening the accession of the currently non-member states of the former Yugoslavia would accelerate the process.