One of the major challenges for policymakers in Serbia is to improve the competitiveness of the Serbian economy. Universally applicable solution to this problem does not exist, but there are certain segments which can be a significant driver of improving the effectiveness and productivity of the economy by implementing diverse possibilities offered by the digital economy. A critical factor in the development of digital economy is the sector of information and communication technology (ICT), which has the potential to extremely improve the competitiveness of Serbia and start production towards modern business processes, but also contribute to a notable synergistic effect in terms of the competitiveness of micro-enterprises. Accordingly, the aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of information and communication technologies (ICT) as a factor for competitiveness and development of the digital economy, to analyze the application of ICT in the economy of Serbia, to highlight the benefits of development and acceptance of new solutions in the field of ICT, to create recommendations that would contribute to improving the business environment in the ICT field, and consequently of the digital economy as a whole.

In this paper, we use Deaton’s demand model and Household Budget Survey data from 2006 to 2017 to provide a first robust and reliable estimate of cigarettes price elasticity for Serbia. The case of Serbia is particularly interesting and important as it provides evidence for a country in which tobacco market is characterised by the high tobacco consumption, low prices and large perceived impact of multinational tobacco companies on public revenues, export and employment, given their considerable cigarette production in Serbia. The price elasticity of cigarettes is estimated at −0.639, in line with the previous estimates for the low-income and middle-income countries. Estimated negative cigarettes price elasticity for Serbia suggests that tobacco tax policy could be used effectively to reduce cigarette consumption in Serbia, which could lower the harmful health effects of cigarettes. Furthermore, a calculation based on the estimated elasticity suggests that increasing tobacco taxes could also have positive fiscal effects, as the expected revenue from the taxes would increase.

In Serbia irrigation is not widely utilized to reduce water scarcity in crop production. Therefore, wheat yields largely depend on weather factors. Over the past two decades, there has been recorded a significant change in weather conditions in Serbia. Such change produces concerns about Serbia's food security and exports since wheat is among the most important agricultural products. In this paper authors analyze and quantify the impact of weather factors on the achieved wheat yields, using a set of panel data on selected Serbian municipalities in fourteen years (2000-2013). The multidimensional regression was conducted as a sort of quasi-experiment, combining data on achieved yields in selected municipalities, with data on weather factors: temperature, precipitation, extraterrestrial radiation, and evapotranspiration. Utilizing the Hargreaves method of determining reference evapotranspiration, average daily water deficit was computed as a single representative indicator of weather conditions. Testing was conducted on four predefined sub-periods within the vegetation season of wheat, and the impact of average daily water deficit on wheat yields was estimated for each of these sub-periods. Results show a robust, statistically significant impact of change in average daily water deficit on decreased wheat yields. Growth of water deficit by 0.1 mm, in the period November 15th to April 1st results with 175 kg/ha lower yields, while in the period April 1st to May 15th results in 45 kg/ha lower yields. Impact shows to be conditional on the altitude, rapidly losing on intensity and significance above 100 m.

Summary In this paper authors review the issue of relationship between economy

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