Marked Deceleration of Growth Due to Weaker External Environment. Economic Outlook for 2001 and 2002

Economic growth in Austria is set to slow from 3.2 percent last year to 2.2 percent in 2001, possibly keeping that pace in 2002. The deceleration is caused mainly by less favourable developments in the world economy, and in particular the significant downturn in the USA. A restrictive stance in Austrian budgetary policy will make for domestic growth lagging behind that of the euro area as a whole. Weaker cyclical activity will also make it more difficult to achieve budget balance in the general government accounts by 2002. Unemployment will edge down further in the current year, before stabilising at a rate of 3½ percent of the labour force.