Improper quality adjustment has long been identified as a source of potential measurement bias in consumer price indices (CPIs). However, as no benchmark for quality adjustment exists, it has always been difficult to estimate a potential bias. For this paper, we develop a corridor in which...

Die Studie analysiert die langfristigen Auswirkungen vorübergehender Unterbrechungen eines Beschäftigungsverhältnisses mit anschließender Wiedereinstellung durch denselben Arbeitgeber ("Temporäre Layoffs"). Betrachtet werden reguläre Beschäftigungsaufnahmen aus Arbeitslosigkeit in...

Despite widespread acknowledgment of the climate crisis, ambitious climate action remains constrained by competing visions of socio-ecological transformation (SET). Drawing on critical state theory, which conceptualizes the state as a "strategic terrain" where social forces struggle over...

This contribution provides a first comprehensive mapping of the socio-ecological transformation (SET) landscape within the Austrian media (2015-2022). Utilizing a multi-layered mixed-methods framework that integrates Named Entity Recognition (NER), Structural Topic Modeling (STM), and Critical...

Austria's economy is recovering over the projection period from a recession that, according to the revised National Accounts, proved comparably severe to Germany's. The rebound is driven by private consumption, while foreign trade in goods continues to contract for the time being. Residential...

Rechenkapazität ist ein zentraler Bestandteil moderner digitaler Infrastruktur - und ein strategischer Standortfaktor, bei dem Europa und Österreich im internationalen Vergleich noch deutlichen Aufholbedarf haben. Vor dem Hintergrund des EU-weiten Kapazitätsausbaus im Rahmen des "AI Continent...

Moderne Breitbandnetze sind eine zentrale Voraussetzung für die digitale Transformation von Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Die vorliegende EcoAustria Policy Note analysiert auf Basis mehrjähriger Forschungsarbeiten und einer Evaluierung der Programme BBA2020 und BBA2030 die volkswirtschaftlichen...

Vor dem Hintergrund einer langsamen konjunkturellen Erholung steigt die Kreditnachfrage österreichischer Unternehmen seit dem dritten Quartal 2025 wieder schrittweise an. Davor war sie in einer ausgedehnten wirtschaftlichen Schwächephase drei Jahre lang gesunken. Für den aktuellen Anstieg der...

Despite widespread acknowledgment of the climate crisis, ambitious climate action remains constrained by competing visions of socio-ecological transformation (SET). Drawing on critical state theory, which conceptualizes the state as a "strategic terrain" where social forces struggle over...

This contribution provides a first comprehensive mapping of the socio-ecological transformation (SET) landscape within the Austrian media (2015-2022). Utilizing a multi-layered mixed-methods framework that integrates Named Entity Recognition (NER), Structural Topic Modeling (STM), and Critical...

Im Euroraum sind rund 12 % der Preise administriert, das heißt, ihre Festsetzung erfolgt entweder direkt durch den Staat oder wird stark von ihm beeinflusst; in Österreich sind es rund 9 %. Besonders im Dienstleistungssektor ist der staatliche Einfluss hoch - im Euroraum sind etwa 18 % der...

Trotz geopolitischer Spannungen und wirtschaftlicher Unsicherheiten erreichten zum Jahresultimo 2024 die Bestände ausländischer Direktinvestitionen (DI) in Österreich (Passive DI oder PDI), sowie österreichischer DI im Ausland (Aktive DI oder ADI) neue Höchstwerte. Jedoch zeigten sich...

Die Diskussion über die Wiederbelebung der Vermögensteuer in Deutschland hat in den vergangenen Monaten Fahrt aufgenommen. Mit Verweis auf Ungleichheit bei der Verteilung von Vermögen und den steigenden staatlichen Finanzierungsbedarf fordern Parteien und NGOs eine stärkere Besteuerung...

Nach einer zweijährigen Rezession verzeichnete Österreich 2025 ein moderates Wirtschaftswachstum von 0,7 %. Der Start in das Jahr 2026 verlief positiv. Der am 28. Februar ausgebrochene Nahost- Krieg und die in Folge gestiegenen Energiepreise bringen jedoch erneut große Unsicherheit mit sich...

In European day-ahead electricity markets, carbon allowance costs passed through by marginal fossil plants raise consumer expenditure and generate inframarginal rents for non-emitting generators. We propose a settlement modification: when the zonal day-ahead price exceeds a threshold,...

The increasing concentration of income and wealth on the national and international level is a topic that has received increased attention both in social science research as well as public policy debates. While data availability is a well-known and often-lamented problem in wealth studies,...

Demographic research has repeatedly demonstrated differences in fertility on the subnational level, especially between urban and rural regions. The most recent literature focuses on historical developments of total fertility, cohort fertility, or indicators of late fertility (35+). The present...

This article offers a new way of classifying and measuring state support for reproductive equity across countries, focusing on medically assisted reproduction (MAR) and abortion. Drawing on the notion of stratified reproduction and comparative welfare state research, we propose a...

Austria's economy is recovering over the projection period from a recession that, according to the revised National Accounts, proved comparably severe to Germany's. The rebound is driven by private consumption, while foreign trade in goods continues to contract for the time being. Residential...

Der aktuelle EcoAustria Competitiveness Index (ECI) zeigt auch im ersten Halbjahr 2025 keine echte Trendwende: Österreich verliert im europäischen Vergleich weiterhin an Wettbewerbsfähigkeit. Besonders bei Investitionen, Exporten und Produktivität bleibt die Entwicklung hinter der anderer...

Die österreichische Außenwirtschaft ist ein zentraler Motor des wirtschaftlichen Wachstums. Dieser Motor ist jedoch zunehmend ins Stottern geraten. Gründe dafür sind - neben innerstaatlichen Faktoren - wachsende geopolitische Unsicherheiten und Krisen, die schwächelnde deutsche...

Each of Austria's three RBDs: the Danube, the Rhine, and the Elbe is part of three international RBDs. An international agreement, permanent co-operation body, and international RBMP are in place in all three RBDs, but only the Danube and the Rhine iRBMPs (international RBMPs) can be easily...

The Floods Directive (FD) established a framework for flood risk management. It foresees 6-yearly cycles aiming at the reduction of the adverse consequences associated with floods in the European Union (EU). The first cycle covered the period 2010-15. The second cycle covered the period 2016-21....

In 2021 and particularly in 2022, gas prices rose sharply in Europe due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the previous throttling of Russian gas supply to Western Europe. Because of the merit-order system, this also led to an increase in electricity prices in Austria and in many other EU...

While Austrian students outperform most of their European peers, basic skills have decreased over the past decade. Education outcomes remain strongly linked to socio-economic and migrant background. Despite efforts to increase the number of places in ECEC, especially for under-3-year-olds, there...

The implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which requires assurance on sustainability reports for numerous companies, has reached different implementation stages throughout the EU. This study investigated the key uncertainties and challenges arising from the...

As part of the EESC's efforts to promote fundamental rights and the rule of law, a delegation from the EESC's Fundamental Rights and Rule of Law Group visited Austria on 19 and 20 March 2025. The delegation met with several civil society representatives, specifically civil society organisations...

As populations age, the sustainability of long-term care systems increasingly depends on the availability of informal care, particularly from partners. This paper addresses the question of how much care we may expect partners to provide in the future by projecting demand for long-term care...

We study the short- and medium-term extensive and intensive margins of intangible investments in firm growth processes. The intensive and extensive margins of investment are both highly skewed and differ across sectors. Less productive firms are less likely to invest in intangibles, while...

Labour shortages in Europe have led firms to adopt two key strategies: automation and the employment of migrants. This study empirically examines the relationship between robot adoption and immigrant labour (differentiated by region of origin and education level) in Austrian firms using a novel...

Mit fortschreitender Digitalisierung findet ein erheblicher Teil der drahtlosen Sprachkommunikation und Datennutzung nicht mehr im Außenraum, sondern in Innenbereichen wie Gebäuden und Fahrzeugen (z. B. Zügen, Kfz) statt. Eine Neuausrichtung der regulatorischen Vorgaben hin zu einer...

This report investigates the issue of local actors resisting the implementation of high-speed rail (HSR) routes through the example of reactions to the Brenner Base project in Germany and Austria. In order to understand the causes of significant resistance, the report contrasts reactions to the...

We contribute new cross-national evidence about the nature of measurement errors in employment earnings, fitting the same error components model to harmonised earnings data for Austria and the UK. The model allows for measurement error in the administrative data and linkage error as well as...

The medium-term budget projection for 2025 to 2029 indicates a persistently high need for fiscal consolidation in Austria's public finances. If the consolidation measures announced by mid-April remain unchanged, the general government deficit would remain close to 4 percent of GDP throughout the...