Transition Changes in Ex-Yugoslav Countries' Agrarian Trade Balances

Because of big internal differences in the production-resource structure, the former uniform Yugoslav market was characterized by intensive inter-republic trade. Given the controlled prices of agrarian products, their internal trade was frequently referred to as an example of non-equivalent exchange. After the violent secession and disintegration of the common country, the agrarian trade balances of the former republics and their positions in foreign trade essentially began to change. The relative changes of the agrarian-export positions of the republics/states are gained an insight into in the context of the market structure and the agrarian potentials of the former shared environment and the current new one. At the same time, we are comparatively analyzing the market structure and relations within the three status/systemically completely different conditions of these countries for the duration of an almost two-and-ahalf- decade-long period (from 1988 to 2010), namely: (1) the pre-transition position on the uniform market; (2) the transition period after the disintegration of the common state, and (3) the post-transition period of independence. The sectoral significance of the agrarian market is assessed via an analysis of the share of agrarian trade turnover in total foreign-trade turnover, as well as the movement of the net balance of agrarian trade, while positional changes in the spatial structure of the total and agrarian export and import are being gained an insight into via the relative share of some countries in the total trade turnover of the ex-YU market countries. Utilizing specific analytical methods, such a way to analyze the transition dynamic and structural changes of the agro-food sector in foreign trade offers a possibility of the identifying and objectivizing of the comparative advantage and export potentials of the agrarian foreign trade of these countries. The remarks and assessments derived on that basis are indicative of the consequences of the disintegration of the former uniform Yugoslav agrarian market.