Serbia's downward trend in employment could continue in the course of 2012 due to expected serious impacts and shocks from the spillover of the European and global crisis on the financial and real sector in the country, Miladin Kovacevic, an economist, said Tuesday.

At the presentation of the December edition of Macroeconomic Analysis and Trends (MAT) magazine, he pointed out that the decline in employment in 2011 had been much lower than in 2009, which had been “the worst crisis year so far.”

He added, however, that it did not mean that the downward trend in employment in the current year would stop.

Kovacevic also pointed to a downward trend observed regarding the fall in employment during the three crisis years, from 2009 to 2011.

He pointed out that the employment decline in 2009 was about 50,000 jobs, in 2010 it was much lower, 30,000 jobs, and that by September 2011, a decline of 10,000 jobs was observed.

He said that the decline could be continued over 2012, stressing, however, that speculations should be left aside as it was better to wait and see how the situation would develop.