East German tourist industry - a branch with growth potential
Siegfried Beer
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 12,
2004
Abstract
Since 1990 capital stock in East German accommodation industry has been remarkably extended and modernized. With about half a million beds in 2003, the number of available guest beds has doubled since 1992. Although tourism intensity (overnight stays per 1000 inhabitants) has also grown considerably in the same period – namely onto a 2.5 times higher level than in 1992 – the percentage of taken beds is, except in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, not yet satisfying. An important task is therefore to improve the basically good opportunities even more in order to animate the economic growth and to create new jobs. Suitable economic settings need to be formed for this.
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The development of R&D intensive industries in East Germany makes progress
Siegfried Beer
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 2,
2004
Abstract
For East Germany – also called the New German Länder – it is very important to enlarge human capital intensive production. Starting from this consideration, the empirical study investigates the development of research & development (R&D) intensive industries for the years 1998 to 2002 whereby the different technology classes are also taken into account. The study is based on official statistics for producer goods. The analysis shows that the production of goods from R&D intensive industries increased stronger than the total production in East Germany’s manufacturing industry (8.5% versus 5.9%). Especially the increased production of high-technology goods contributed to this development. Most important branches thereby are electronic industry and aerospace industry. Medium-tech industries were less important for the above described trend. Overall, the development indicates an improvement of the technological capability of East Germany’s manufacturing industry. Compared to West Germany, however, the production of goods from medium-tech industries is underrepresented. Further more, it is only one group of products in East Germany’s industry that plays a dominant role within Germany as a whole. This is electronic devices.
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Investment, Financial Markets, New Economy Dynamics and Growth in Transition Countries
Albrecht Kauffmann, P. J. J. Welfens
Economic Opening Up and Growth in Russia: Finance, Trade, Market Institutions, and Energy,
2004
Abstract
The transition to a market economy in the former CMEA area is more than a decade old and one can clearly distinguish a group of relatively fast growing countries — including Estonia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia — and a majority of slowly growing economies, including Russia and the Ukraine. Initial problems of transition were natural in the sense that systemic transition to a market economy has effectively destroyed part of the existing capital stock that was no longer profitable under the new relative prices imported from world markets; and there was a transitory inflationary push as low state-administered prices were replaced by higher market equilibrium prices. Indeed, systemic transformation in eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union have brought serious transitory inflation problems and a massive transition recession; negative growth rates have continued over many years in some countries, including Russia and the Ukraine, where output growth was negative throughout the 1990s (except for Russia, which recorded slight growth in 1997). For political and economic reasons the economic performance of Russia is of particular relevance for the success of the overall transition process. If Russia would face stagnation and instability, this would undermine political and economic stability in the whole of Europe and prospects for integrating Russia into the world economy.
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Firm-Specific Determinants of Productivity Gaps between East and West German Industrial Branches
Johannes Stephan, Karin Szalai
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 183,
2003
Abstract
Industrial productivity levels of formerly socialist economies in Central East Europe (including East Germany) are considerably lower than in the more mature Western economies. This research aims at assessing the reasons for lower productivities at the firm level: what are the firm-specific determinants of productivity gaps. To assess this, we have conducted an extensive field study and focussed on a selection of two important manufacturing industries, namely machinery manufacturers and furniture manufacturers, and on the construction industry. Using the data generated in field work, we test a set of determinant-candidates which were derived from theory and prior research in that topic. Our analysis uses the simplest version of the matched-pair approach, in which first hypothesis about relevant productivity level-determinants are tested. In a second step, positively tested hypothesis are further assessed in terms of whether they also constitute firm-specific determinants of the apparent gaps between the firms in our Eastern and such in our Western panels. Our results suggest that the quality of human capital plays an important role in all three industrial branches assessed. Amongst manufacturing firms, networking activities and the use of modern technologies for communication are important reasons for the lower levels of labour productivity in the East. The intensity of long-term strategic planning on behalf of the management turned out to be relevant only for machinery manufacturers. Product and process innovations unexpectedly exhibit an ambiguous picture, as did the extent of specialisation on a small number of products in the firms’ portfolio and the intensity of competition.
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Differences between German regions with respect to growth factors: a comparison based on a cluster analysis
Franz Kronthaler
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 13,
2003
Abstract
The objective of the paper is to examine regional disparities within Germany with respect to the endowment with growth factors. The study is based on a cluster analysis. Growth factors considered are innovation activity, human capital, private and public capital, and regional concentration. The results show that German regions can be classified in ten clusters with different characteristic profiles. Eight clusters consist of West German regions and two clusters comprise East German regions. There is no cluster which contains both West and East German regions. Regarding the East German clusters more precisely it can be shown that the endowment with growth factors in most of East German regions is low. This result applies also for several West German regions. However there are few East German regions particularly those with important agglomerations which have a more favourable endowment with growth factors. Nevertheless also in those regions still several weaknesses in the endowment with growth factors exist.
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On the stability of the banking systems in the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary
Werner Gnoth
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 11,
2003
Abstract
The EU countries are interested in stable banking systems of candidate countries, because any kind of instability of the financial sector could have serious consequences to the financial and exchange rate system of the whole Community. In the article the state of stability of the banking systems is analyzed, based on several important indicators. At present the banking systems of candidate countries still look fairly stable: weak competition among the banks, a high inflation rate and a low intermediation rate in terms of total assets / GDP have enabled banks still to reach a sufficient net interest yield. So they have been able to stand a relatively high share of non- performing loans and also a relatively high amount of foreign exchange indebtedness. In order to ensure a problem-free integration of the banking systems of the candidate countries in the EU they must still meet several conditions. They need to widen and refine the supply of services and to lower the share of non-performing loans, mainly in the Czech Republic and Poland. The foreign exchange indebtedness of the banking and enterprises domains in Poland and Hungary needs to be restricted. Successful integration in EU competition requires in general increase in the banks own capital.
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A Study of the Competitiveness of Regions based on a Cluster Analysis: The Example of East Germany
Franz Kronthaler
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 179,
2003
Abstract
This paper examines whether some East German regions have already achieved the same economic capability as the regions in West Germany, so that they are on a competitive basis with the West German regions and are able to reach the same economic level in the long run. If this is not the case, it is important to know more about the reasons for the economic weakness of the East German regions twelve years after unification.
The study is based on a cluster analysis. Criteria for the cluster formation are several economic indicators, which provide information about the economic capability of regions. The choice of the indicators is based on a review of results of the theoretical and empirical literature on the new growth theory and new economic geography.
The results show that most of the East German regions have not yet reached the economic capability and competitiveness of their West German counterparts so that they - from the viewpoint of the new growth theory and the new economic geography - are not in the position to reach the same economic level. According to these theories economic disadvantages are most notably the consequences of less technical progress, a lack of entrepreneurship and fewer business concentration. Under these points it is especially noteworthy that young well educated people leave these East German regions so that human capital might will turn into a bottle-neck in the near future. Only a few regions in East Germany - those with important agglomerations - are comparable to West German regions that are characterised by average capability and competitiveness, but not to those with above average economic capability and competitiveness. Even those more advanced East German regions still suffer from a slower technical progress.
There are important policy implications based on these results: regional policy in East Germany was not able to assist raising all regions to a sufficient level of competitiveness. It may be more effective to concentrate the regional policy efforts on a selection of important agglomerations. This has also strong implications for the EU regional policy assuming that the accession countries will have similar problems in catching up to the economic level of the EU as have the East German regions.
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Standortbedingungen der Biotechnologiebranche - Eine Analyse zur Identifikation von Erfolgsfaktoren für Biotechnologiefirmen und Bioregionen
Walter Komar
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 176,
2003
Abstract
The paper analyzes the factors, which are important for the success of biotechnology companies and bio regions. For these purposes the local conditions of an advanced bio region are compared with a not so advanced bio region in a bench mark approach. The significant factors for the success of biotechnology companies and bio regions are identified by the logistic regression analysis. The result is that a bundle of factors for the development of biotechnology companies and bio regions is important. Therein the supply of human capital, networks and public research in the region play an outstanding role.
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On the presence of important growth factors in German regions along the border with Poland
Gerhard Heimpold
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 7,
2003
Abstract
The German regions bordering on Poland are regarded as economically weak. Prior to the EU enlargement there was great uncertainty about the economic prospects of these regions. Against this background this contribution tries to shed some light on this debate about the future of the border regions. The empirical research shows two different findings: Firstly, the border space is not a homogeneous one. Rather, certain sub-regions show strengths – for instance the university towns in terms of the availability of human capital and of service industries. Other districts are remarkable for their great share of employees in the manufacturing sector as well as for their exceptionally high industrial investment. Secondly, the border regions show an endowment with essential growth determinants which is often below East Germany as a whole. But this is the case in many other East German regions too. The East-West disparities turn out to be much more serious than the intra-East German disparities.
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Possible effects of demographic change - An overview
Gunter Steinmann, Olaf Fuchs, Sven Tagge
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 15,
2002
Abstract
One of the more important influences shaping the future economic conditions of the highly industrialized countries is the decline and aging of their population. The article is a comprehensive survey of the impact of this development on key economic variables and the institutions of the welfare state. While the overall consequence of the aging process on productivity growth is more likely to be negative, there are also some offsetting forces like the increase in the capital intensity. The institutions of the welfare state, which are based on intergenerational transfers, will have to be reformed, in order to bring them in line with the demographic process. The prediction of a decrease in the rate of unemployment as a consequence of a declining labor force is according to our analysis not justified.
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