The dilemma over Washington consensus guidelines or industrial policy

During the 1990s Croatia went through the process of transition to market economy mostly following the Washington Consensus policy guidelines. Since the period before the last global financial crisis, Croatia has shown almost no convergence to developed European Union member states and has been among the least developed ones. This paper examines the causes of Croatian development lag, while providing an overview of contemporary development policies and international production fragmentation trends that affected them. The paper points out to several important factors that shaped the Croatian development path. Expectations from foreign capital were overrated, as the foreign direct investment consisted mainly of brownfield investment in large monopolistic companies and was rarely directed to export-oriented sectors. Accession to the World Trade Organisation was followed by stronger growth of imports than exports and joining the European Union did not bring economic growth as fast as expected. Lack of industrial policy implementation has led Croatia to deindustrialisation and increasing importance of the tourism sector as a form of the Dutch disease.

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Ocena antykryzysowej polityki gospodarczej Stanów Zjednoczonych i wybranych państw członkowskich Unii Europejskiej w latach 2005–2014

10.31338/1641-2478pe.2.16.2 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 26-46

Author(s):

Marcin Jan Flotyński

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

European Union ◽

Financial Markets ◽

Global Economy ◽

Global Financial Crisis ◽

The United States ◽

The European Union ◽

High Volatility ◽

The Global Financial Crisis ◽

Domestic Products

The global financial crisis in 2007–2009 began a period of high volatility on the financial markets. Specifically, it caused an increased amplitude of fluctuations of the level of gross domestic products, the level of investment and consumption and exchange rates in particular countries. To address the adverse market circumstances, governments and central banks took actions in order to bolster the weakening global economy. The aim of this article is to present the anti-crisis actions in the United States and selected member states of the European Union, including Poland, and an assessment of their efficiency. The analysis conducted indicates that generally the actions taken in the United States in response to the crisis were faster and more adequate to the existing circumstances than in the European Union.

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EUROPEAN UNION IN WTO’S DISPUTE SETTLEMENT SYSTEM

Roczniki Administracji i Prawa ◽

10.5604/01.3001.0014.8376 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (XX) ◽

pp. 33-49

Author(s):

Małgorzata Czermińska

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Dispute Settlement ◽

World Trade Organisation ◽

The European Union ◽

Dispute Settlement Mechanism ◽

Settlement System ◽

Dispute Settlement System ◽

Trade Conflicts ◽

Settlement Mechanism ◽

Descriptive Method

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) serves as a forum for co-operation, currently for as many as 164 countries, and in addition, it allows for the resolution, also amicably, of trade conflicts between parties, consequently, settling disputes between them. One of essential provisions of the Uruguay Round (UR) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) included the introduction of a new dispute settlement mechanism, that is to say, the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU), which became effective on 1 January 1995. Member States of the European Union were not only actively involved in developing the rules of the international trade system, but they also influenced, to a large extent, the form of both such rules and of ongoing trade negotiations, as well as they assumed and still assume responsibility for the final arrangements. Hence, their role in the multilateral trade system is both active and passive. This paper aims to demonstrate the functioning of the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism and show the role which the European Union serves in this system. The Article employs an analytical and descriptive method. It draws on sources from the national and international literature and WTO’s databases.

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State industrial policy in conditions European integration of Ukraine

Public administration and local government ◽

10.33287/102030 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 45 (2) ◽

pp. 146-153

Author(s):

Valeriі Rіeznikov

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

European Integration ◽

Industrial Policy ◽

Conformity Assessment ◽

Industrial Complex ◽

The European Union ◽

Industrial Products ◽

Market Surveillance ◽

Mutual Recognition Agreement ◽

The Eu

Since the beginning of 2020, there have been crisis phenomena around the world due to the global slowdown in economic growth and the introduction of quarantine due to the coronavirus pandemic. In this situation, the most vulnerable are developing countries with a small margin of safety, which, unfortunately, also applies to Ukraine, whose economy is open and highly dependent on external markets. Due to the slowdown in the growth of the global economy, the situation in one of the main export industries of Ukraine – industry is deteriorating first of all. The European Union has become one of the important export markets for Ukraine’s industrial products in recent years, which has raised the issue of shaping a relevant state industrial policy in today’s challenging environment. The purpose of the article is to determine the directions of formation and implementation of state industrial policy in the conditions of European integration of Ukraine in modern conditions. In 2020, due to the economic crisis and the pandemic of the coronavirus, the Ukrainian industry may lose even more due to low demand for ferrous metals in world markets, including in EU countries. The Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products is a way of eliminating technical barriers to trade between Ukraine and the EU. The Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products is a type of mutual recognition agreement that requires a partner country to align its legislation, practices and infrastructure with EU rules.It is envisaged that in the sectors covered by this Agreement, Ukrainian exporters will be able to label their products with the CE mark and to sell them freely on the EU market without additional EU certification. Potentially, the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products could cover up to a fifth of Ukraine’s exports to the EU, notably mechanical engineering products. The formation and implementation of state industrial policy in the conditions of European integration of Ukraine should take place using the following algorithm:1. Study of the new EU Regulation 2019/1020 of 20.06.2019 on market surveillance and conformity of products and elaboration of relevant amendments to the legislation of Ukraine.2. Concentration of the function of legal coordination of draft regulatory acts (including technical regulations) aimed at implementing the Association Agreement and preparation for the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products in one state instance, equipped with specialized personnel with adequate knowledge of EU law and languages.3. Strengthening the requirements for the accreditation and oversight process for accredited bodies, as well as the process of designating and monitoring conformity assessment bodies to ensure that their technical competence is adequate and to prevent fraud and the use of fraudulent practices.4. In the absence of a rapid prospect of concluding an Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products, the harmonization of procedures and requirements that are too burdensome for exporters and importers, first and foremost.5. Paying particular attention to capacity building of state market surveillance authorities.6. Raising awareness of business entities and enhancing the role of business associations in raising such awareness.7. Increasing the EU’s interest in providing Ukraine with effective technical assistance for the development of legislation and the proper functioning of quality infrastructure and market surveillance authorities. Introduce the position of Deputy Prime Minister for Industry and launch support programs for the real economy. Thus, Ukraine’s further integration with the European Union is largely linked to the formulation and implementation of relevant industrial policy, which should be to continue reforming all sectors of the economy, in particular, to modernize the industrial complex. And the signing of the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products in the three priority sectors («industrial visa waiver») in the medium term should become one of the main foreign economic priorities of Ukraine’s European integration in the face of the current challenges of today.

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Agency Insight from Portugal’s Autoridade da Concorrência

Journal of Antitrust Enforcement ◽

10.1093/jaenfo/jnaa009 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 233-238

Author(s):

Margarida Matos Rosa

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Industrial Policy ◽

Competition Policy ◽

Consumer Welfare ◽

The European Union ◽

The Eu

Abstract 2020 will be a landmark year for reasons that had not been anticipated. But it is also a critical year for the implementation, by national legislators in the European Union, of the ECN+ Directive. This will grant competition agencies stronger means of enforcement and will consecrate independence of enforcement decisions based on the pursuit of consumer welfare protection. Another developing topic in 2020 is industrial policy in the EU and its coexistence with competition policy. While the EU needs to remain pragmatic, it need not — must not, I would argue - lose its distinctive economic features.

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Ownership Concentration and Performance Recovery Patterns in the European Union

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11040953 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 953 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Alexandra Horobet ◽

Lucian Belascu ◽

Ștefania Curea ◽

Alma Pentescu

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Sovereign Debt ◽

Global Financial Crisis ◽

Corporate Performance ◽

Manufacturing Sector ◽

Ownership Concentration ◽

The European Union ◽

And Performance ◽

The Global Financial Crisis

Our study addresses the link between ownership concentration and corporate performance in the manufacturing sector in the European Union in an economic environment stressed by the global financial and sovereign debt crises. This is, to our knowledge, the first attempt to tackle differences between companies with different origin-countries in EU from the perspective of ownership concentration and corporate performance in a period marked by the adverse impact of the global financial crisis. Ownership concentration is measured by the number of shareholders and the percentage of their individual and collective holdings, while performance is measured by accounting-based and market-based indicators. Our results, based on a detailed and methodical statistical analysis, show a clear division between Western and Eastern companies in terms of ownership concentration and performance, with an impact on businesses’ recovery patterns. Overall, there is a positive link between ownership concentration and corporate performance in the case of Western companies, but not for Eastern-based companies. Moreover, ownership concentration has supported business recovery in EU, but particularly for Western companies. On the other hand, our results suggest that market investors’ assessment of corporate performance is disconnected from business fundamentals and do not acknowledge the role of ownership concentration (either beneficial of detrimental) for performance assessment.

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