Italy continues to record low employment rates, in particular among youth, older people and women. With an overall unemployment rate that has been reduced to below the EU average over the past decade, the employment gap vis-à-vis most other EU countries reflects low participation. After a brief...

Polish banks benefit from operating in a country showing economic resilience, which did not enter into recession in 2009. Overall, the Polish banking system has weathered the crisis well so far. Capitalization in the system is at a healthy 13.1% level and the rate of earnings retention was close...

Given the consolidation needs and the provisions of the new fiscal rule, budgetary planning in Germany has become more demanding. Fiscal projections are already difficult since the link between total tax revenue and economic activity is observed to be unstable. This Country Focus identifies...

Finland is the forerunner in adjusting to the ageing of population. Population ageing will have repercussions on the labour market, economic growth potential and public finances. The main features of the Finnish strategy to counter the effects of population ageing have been extensive and...

Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to the Baltic countries were driven by different factors. Initially the process of privatisation and low labour costs attracted investment into public utilities and manufacturing. Later, taking advantage of the Baltic geographical location, further FDI...

This study focuses on the most important drivers of the swift current account rebalancing which is taking place in Estonia and considers the possible way forward. After very large deficits in the boom years (2005-2007), Estonia's current account balance turned positive in the downturn, as...

Romania's domestic demand boom over the past few years has led to rapidly widening current account deficits, reaching an estimated 13½% of GDP in 2008. High private sector dissaving has been exacerbated by a procycylical fiscal policy, with the public deficit likely to exceed 3% of GDP in 2008....

Measuring public sector efficiency is not generally straightforward and presents a difficult empirical issue, specifically in terms of adequate measurement of costs and outcomes. This Country Focus attempts to measure the efficiency of public spending in Malta by applying two alternative...

Social expenditure in Poland appears to increase regional employment disparities. In particular, the farmers' social fund (KRUS) seems to contribute to the rising regional dispersion in the number of recipients of social transfers. This is the result of KRUS benefits being poorly related to...

Regional income and labour market disparities in Poland are characterised by three dimensions: the gap between the western and the eastern parts of the country, the privileged position of the capital region and rising differences between rural and urban regions. Disparities in labour markets are...