Responses by firms in the regular WIFO business survey have signalled an upturn in Austrian industrial activity for almost half a year. In April and May, judgements on current business conditions have not improved further. Nevertheless, prospects for the next few months remain positive. The...

The Austrian economy is expected to grow by slightly over 1 percent this year, and by more than 2½ percent in 2003. This projection by WIFO has been upheld since last December. It is supported by a tentative rebound in activity in the first quarter and the recent trend in leading indicators....

Business surveys in Germany and Austria point to a tentative pick-up in expectations for the months to come. However, the current situation in Austrian manufacturing remains bleak, and exports are lower than a year ago. More encouraging are reports from the construction industry and the retail...

The business cycle should have reached its lower turning point in the first quarter, and a recovery is expected to gather momentum from now. Because of the negative carry-over from last year, GDP growth on annual average 2002 may not exceed 1.2 percent, accelerating to 2.8 percent in 2003. While...