The Competitiveness of Austrian Manufacturing vis-à-vis the EC Internal Market

Non-tariff barriers continue to impede trade flows between Austria and the EC. The completion of the internal EC market will exert increased competitive pressure on protected Austrian sectors. This will affect nearly half of all manufacturing employees. A fourth of these now works in sectors whose competitiveness is low. In order to ensure the survival of these sectors in the long run, new firm strategies, as well as a new industrial strategy are required which enhance firms' competitiveness.