Current economic developments in Portugal do not portend well. The Portuguese GDP is shrinking and the growth forecast for 2012 is gloomy - in the EU only the forecast for Greece is even worse (Figure 1). Moreover, Portugal is now having to pay double-digit interest rates on its bonds, its debt...

The European Union at the crossroads - Thirteen years after its foundation, the European Monetary Union (EMU) is facing the greatest challenge of its history thus far. High unemployment in a number of member countries, the need for substantial consolidation of the budgets of numerous...

The analysis of Baltic regional trade patterns reveals that during the nineties the Baltic states made significant progress to integrate into the Western European division of labour although a significant share of (transit) trade with Russia remained. In view of this development, history seems...

The analysis of Baltic trade statistics and gravity estimates reveal that Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have rapidly integrated into the international division of labour with a distinct EU focus. The Baltic States have taken a road towards the EU common market which pays particular attention to...

At the turn of the year 2012/2013 the Eurogroup and the European Commission heralded the message that the worst crisis in Greece would be over. According to this message, the Greek government had delivered the promised steps of structural and fiscal reforms and had agreed with a tough timetable...

Estonia is widely regarded as a paramount example for a successful transformation of a socialist economic system to a functioning market economy. Against the backdrop of this positive image which contrasts strongly with the crisis scenarios in Southern Europe the remaining problems of Estonia...

[A new chapter of the Greek crisis?] Already at the turn of the year 2012/2013 the Eurogroup and the European Commission heralded the message that the worst crisis in Greece would be over. According to this message, the Greek government had delivered the promised steps of structural and fiscal...

Estonia is widely regarded as a paramount example for a successful transformation of a socialist economic system to a functioning market economy. Against the backdrop of this positive image which contrasts strongly with the crisis scenarios in Southern Europe the remaining problems of Estonia...

For Germany and the other large BSR neighbors Poland an the Russian Federation Baltic Sea trade is of minor importance. The BSR is only one integration area — i.e. destination of its exports and origin of its imports — among a lot of peers being located in other directions of the compass...