Securing European competitiveness in a global perspective

This brief discusses trends , drivers and policies related to European competitiveness in a global perspective. Over the past two decades, European industry was holding its own against both the old world competition from the US and Japan and newer rivals from China or India. But already before the crisis, sluggish productivity growth and growing internal imbalances weighed on Europe's potential to face the overall challenges of globalisation, ageing populations, growing resource limitations and climate change. Thus, the task now is to inject new dynamism into our economies, while continuing with the necessary adjustment, rebalancing and private and public sector deleveraging.