Using data from a large survey of firms across 26 transition economies, this article assesses the extent of trust in business relationships by measuring the level of prepayment demanded by suppliers, which we interpret as a measure of (dis)trust. We investigate a range of potential determinants...

This paper analyses the performance of GDP growth and inflation forecasts for 25 transition countries between 1994 and 2007, as provided by 13 international institutions, including multilateral, private and academic forecasters. The empirical results show that there is a positive correlation...

Low-income households spend a substantial share of their income on utility services such as electricity, heating and water. The difficulty these socially vulnerable consumers have in affording further tariff increases is often used as an argument against tariff reform. However, detailed...

This paper analyses life satisfaction in transition countries using evidence from the "World Values Survey". The paper demonstrates that individuals in transition economies on average record lower values of self-reported satisfaction with life compared with those in non-transition countries. A...

This paper analyses the accuracy of GDP growth forecasts prepared by the EBRD for 25 transition countries between 1994 and 2004. It provides the first comprehensive statistical analysis of output growth forecasts for transition countries in central and eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of...

This paper analyses the statistical properties of annual inflation forecasts prepared by the EBRD for 25 transition countries between 1994 and 2005. The empirical results show that EBRD forecasts are mostly unbiased. Late within-year forecasts are also found to be efficient. Forecast accuracy is...