According to a recent analysis by the National Bank of Serbia, the external debt of the private sector in Serbia amounted to EUR 13.5 bln at end-December, down by EUR 356 mln from a quarter earlier as a result of debt conversion into equity (EUR 223 mln), net repayment of long-term loans (EUR 139 mln), and currency and other changes (EUR 124 mln).   Working in the opposite direction was net short-term borrowing by banks (EUR 130 mln). A substantial net repayment was recorded in transport and warehousing (EUR 55 mln), retail and wholesale trade (EUR 44 mln), banking sector (EUR 37 mln), real estate business (EUR 34 mln) and other sectors (EUR 16 mln). Disbursements of longterm foreign loans exceeded repayments of the principal in financial leasing (EUR 34 mln) and construction industry (EUR 13 mln). Overall in 2012, external debt of the private sector  gained EUR 181.6 mln – long-term borrowing equalled EUR 2.7 bln and repayments of the principal EUR 2.1 bln. Net short-term borrowing of the private sector amounted to EUR 139.9 mln