CENTROPE Regional Development Report 2010. Returning to Growth – Executive Summary

The economic crisis had a deep impact on the CENTROPE Region. In average the CENTROPE countries were harder hit than the EU 27. Moreover the relative growth performance of regions within CENTROPE shifted. While before 2008 the new EU countries among the CENTROPE countries experienced (with the exception of Hungary) higher growth rates than Austria, in the crises year 2009 the opposite applied. This more than average affectedness of the CENTROPE countries does, however, not apply to the CENTROPE regions. According to existing regional forecasts the GVA decline of the CENTROPE region as an aggregate was still lower than that of the EU 27 and for 2010 as well as the years after this a return to above average growth performance is expected. Recovery has been more rapid than expected. Already in 2010 all CENTROPE countries but Hungary will resume GDP growth and once more economy in the new EU countries will grow faster than in Austria. On a regional level, by contrast, it is expected that all CENTROPE regions but Vas and South Moravia will return to economic growth in 2010. From a long-term perspective the increase in unemployment rates due to the crises seems to be more of a problem, since in the past unemployment rates have proven to be rather persistent in the CENTROPE and have fallen only in times of very rapid growth.