Regional Economic Development. Fourth Quarter of 2015

In the fourth quarter of 2015 – as already over the whole year – regional differences in economic development were primarily determined by geographic location. According to WIFO estimates of the development of regional value added in particular the Western Länder were marked by a positive growth differential. Similarly the central indicators of labour market development pointed to a better development of Western Austria relative to Eastern and Southern Austria. The development of the unemployment rate was, however, influenced by the dynamics of labour supply. The regional variation in unemployment remains high, in the first quarter 2016 the values ranged from 5.7 percent in Salzburg to 13.8 percent in Vienna.