The budget deficit of Montenegro at the end of 2019 will be reduced to 2,9 percent, and sudden financial shocks (such as the recent one with the drop in guarantees in Budva) cannot threaten financial stability, said Prime Minister Duško Marković and Minister of Finance Darko Radunović during of talks with businessmen in the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro.
"In three years, we reduced the tax debt due by 190 million euros. Montenegro is one of the fastest growing economies in Europe. Only Malta and Iceland had a higher growth in the third quarter of this year than Montenegro... This year, we opened 49 new hotels, and in the last three years 103 hotels... We collected 1,1 billion in tax revenue or 75 million euros more than last year," said Prime Minister Marković, among other things, noting that this is why our international credit position is positive and stable.
The president of the Chamber of Commerce, Vlastimir Golubović, announced that although the economy is achieving enviable results, businessmen believe that there is still huge room for progress, especially in the area of suppressing the gray economy and unfair competition.
"Employers who operate legally are the first to be hit by this phenomenon, but in the long run everyone loses," Golubović pointed out. According to him, businessmen continue to highlight the high rates of real estate taxes in certain municipalities. "Although we have the lowest profit tax rate in Europe, the share of taxes and contributions in total labor costs, the so-called tax wedge is 41,3 percent and is above the OECD average of 36,1 percent," which is not sufficiently stimulating for the business environment. ", Golubović added. Minister of Finance Radunović, responding to businessmen's questions, noted, however, that we are in a period of financial consolidation and that we should not experiment too much with taxation and burdening labor costs. The President of the Association Board of the Chamber of Commerce for Tourism Ranko Jovović suggested that create a special tourism ministry, amend the Law on Foreigners and introduce the employment category "permanent seasonal worker". The President of the Board of Trade Association *Jovan Lekić *pointed out that we have growth in the service sector, but also that the growth of the economy cannot be based only on services .
Lekić pointed out that the trade of Montenegro amounts to 2,2 billion, of which exports are worth only 300 million, and the coverage of imports of food products by exports is at a minimum. "The Central Bank should publish the list of blocked companies on a weekly basis," said Lekić, pointing to the problem of illiquidity and that 17.000 companies are blocked.
President of the Board of Trade Association Milutin Đuranović proposed the introduction of "selective protectionism" on the domestic market and strengthening awareness of domestic products.
State Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture Đuro Žugić replied that we have an open economy, that we cannot ban imports, but that we can encourage domestic production.
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