Determinants of Trade Specialization in the New EU Member States

European integration brings about major impulses for structural change in industry within the enlarged European Union. Underlying paper aims at explaining trade specialization patterns of the new EU member states as suppliers on the EU 15 market. The analysis is based on the key shifts in sectoral developments as shown via changing RCA indicators of relative export shares to the EU15. A dynamic panel analysis displays that the most important factors driving comparative advantages in trade are industrial production, export unit values, FDI, R&D, and low relative wages as compared to the EU 15 countries. The impact of these variables varies considerably when dealing either with total manufacturing, with labour intensive or with high-tech industries.