Innovations and Investments of Austrian Firms in the Crisis

Russia's war of aggression in Europe coincided with the beginning of the economic upswing after the COVID-19 crisis. With Russia's invasion in spring 2022, the beginning optimism gave way to a renewed sharp increase in entrepreneurial risk regarding Europe's economic development. With continued high uncertainty about the future economic situation and looming energy shortages, the likelihood increases that the setting of new strategic goals in companies will be overshadowed by the politics of congestion management. However, investments, especially in research and innovation (R&I), play a central role for a sustainable socio-economic development of Austria, also in view of the upcoming climate crisis. The aim of the project is to investigate the importance of R&I for the resilience and competitiveness of Austrian companies in times of an energy and ongoing liquidity crisis and resource scarcity due to disrupted supply chains. Particular focus will be placed on the investment behaviour of companies in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's current war of aggression in Ukraine.