Achieving Sustainable Growth: Will New Europe Fly or Crawl in the 21st Century Global Knowledge Economy?

The article contains an analysis of the budget deficit variability and public debt variation in the EU in 2010. Comparing the scale and economic determinants of changes in the state budget deficit and public debt in 2010 in the Central and Eastern European EU member states and in other EU countries we reach the following conclusions: 1) The average scale of the improvement of the economic result of the state budget as % of GDP was higher in the Central and Eastern Europe countries comparing to other EU member states. In the first group of countries, economic results improved on average by 1.1 percentage points, and in the other by 0.75 percentage points. 2) In most Central and Eastern European countries, as well as in most other EU countries the decline in budgetary expenditure, expressed in% of GDP was the only or major determinant of the reduction of the economic deficit of the state budget as % of GDP. Reduction of public spending in GDP was in turn the result of reducing the fiscal growth of nominal spending. In the Central and Eastern European countries in 2010, the nominal budget spending, decreased on average by 0.4%, while in 2009 increased on average by 16.1%. 3) In the rest of the EU average increase in public debt as % of GDP was higher than the average increase in public debt in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. For the rest of the EU member states, public debt at the end of 2010 as % of GDP was by 4.65 percentage points higher than at the end of 2009, and for the Central and Eastern European countries by 4.14 percentage points higher. At the end of 2010 Central and Eastern European countries had significantly lower average level of public debt as % of GDP in comparison with other EU members states (38.9% of GDP and 74.8% of GDP). In most other EU countries there is virtually no limit for increasing the public debt, therefore there is no limit for a high budget deficit. Among Central and Eastern European EU member states only Hungary are in similar situation while Poland is close by. Therefore, most other EU countries and some countries of Central and Eastern Europe must immediately substantially reduce the scale of the economic deficit of the state budget. Countries where public debt is relatively low should not delay further restrictions of the state budget deficit as later on they will have to make this reduction under pressure of time. Above else, high economic deficit negatively impacts the economy, including economic growth. If EU member states fail to implement quickly the low economic state budget defi cit policy, they will plunge into economic recession that will last for many years.

Karen MacoursUniversity of California, Berkeley, and Katholieke Universiteit LeuvenJohan F. M. SwinnenEuropean Commission and Katholieke Universiteit LeuvenI. IntroductionEconomic reforms have induced important output and productivity changesin the agricultural sectors of transition countries (TCs). There are, however,large differences between the countries in terms of the direction and themagnitude of these changes. For example, agricultural output increased con-siderably in the East Asian TCs, while there was a large output fall in theCentral and East European countries (CEECs) and the former Soviet Union(FSU) during transition (fig. 1).

Economic transformation in Central and Eastern European countries is a very complex process widely discussed in the literature on the subject. It has also become the subject of research and analyses of New Institutional Economics which pays attention to new aspects of transformation. From the NIE perspective, transformation is a long-lasting process of changes of formal institutions, especially property rights and contracts, and informal institutions, such as ethical standards, conventions, religious beliefs and mentality of society. The success of the transformation depends on the degree to which new formal rules correspond to informal rules existing in society. The assessment of the quality of Central and Eastern European countries leaves a lot to be desired; the highest level was achieved by the EU member states, whereas the republics of the former USSR are in the worst situation. The underlying causes of such diversified results of political transformations are disparate historical traditions connected with the market economy and unequal preparation of societies to exist both in the free market conditions and in the diversified political, social and economic situation.The improvement of governing quality is a priority in post-communist countries. Achieving a positive institutional effect requires much time and consistent actions, but from the time perspective it is crucial in order to enjoy economic success.

Changing Development Prospects for the Central and Eastern European EU Member States

Purpose - This research examines how intellectual capital, innovation, and sustainable growth correlate in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) within the fashion industry. Moreover, it investigates how innovation's mediating role influences the relationship between intellectual capital and sustainable growth. Methodology - This research employed a quantitative correlational approach. Data was gathered via online questionnaires distributed to 200 owners or managers of fashion sector MSMEs in Palembang City through a purposive sampling technique. The researchers analyzed data by employing Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Findings - The analysis reveals that intellectual capital significantly and positively influences Inn, while Inn serves as a partial mediator linking intellectual capital to sustainable growth. The variance in Inn is explained by 79.1%, and the variance in sustainable growth is explained by 92.7% through the research model, highlighting the impact of effective intellectual capital management on fostering innovation and sustainable growth. Originality - This research makes a new contribution by integrating intellectual capital, innovation, and sustainable growth in the context of fashion sector MSMEs in developing countries. The research confirms the importance of intellectual capital management as a catalyst for innovation and sustainable growth, especially in MSMEs in Palembang.

Steered by the resource-based view theory, this study scrutinizes the impact of the dimensions of Intellectual Capital (IC)—human capital, structural capital, and relational capital (RC)—on sustainable growth (SG) with the mediating role of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA). We gathered data from 2010 to 2017 of 90 listed firms of China and Pakistan, respectively, and applied EVIEWS. The results indicate that IC plays a significant role in the SG of Chinese and Pakistani firms. IC has a significant influence on differentiation strategy (DS) in Chinese firms whereas only RC has an insignificant influence on DS in Pakistani firms. IC has a significant influence on cost leadership strategy (CLS) in Pakistani firms whereas structural and RC have an insignificant influence on the SG of Chinese firms. In terms of the mediating role, DS partially mediates the relationship between IC and SG in Pakistani firms while it only fully mediates the path between RC and SG in Chinese firms. CLS partially mediates the relationship between IC and SG in Chinese firms while it fully mediates the association between human capital and SG in Pakistani firms. This study recommends Chinese and Pakistani firms to encourage investment in IC to gain SCA and SG in the turbulent markets. To concise, this research advises Chinese firms to invest a satisfactory amount in human capital as compared with structural and RC. However, Pakistani firms should focus on IC to gain SCA and SG.

In the post-covid world, governments explore options to enhance their policies so that corporations can act as successful motors of recovery and sustainable growth. Countries select various objectives related to global value chains (GVC), such as participation, value capture, inclusiveness, and resilience, yet might be unaware of the position of corporations they are supposed to motivate. In this paper, we aim to (re-)investigate the position of Visegrad Four (V4) suppliers within the regional automotive value chains and to compare results with suppliers in other EU member states using the trade in value-added (TiVA) statistics. We set two research questions: How does the position of V4 in automotive GVCs differ from the positions of other EU member states and significant other automotive producing countries? What is the link between the domestic value-added in gross exports of final automotive products and the selected policy variables? A multiple linear regression model is run with TiVA in the automotive industry as the dependent variable and independent variables embodying proxies of GVC-oriented policy consequences. The analysis determined significant differences in value-added levels between V4 countries and other EU countries, and other large automotive-producing economies. The labour cost, productivity, investment in R&D, and innovation support are among the factors where V4 countries fall behind. Implications for Central European audience: The results of our research might be helpful for respective authorities and governments in V4 and other Central and Eastern European countries. They can be of use when setting the goals of and implementing policies targeted at promoting innovation, upgrading within existing GVCs, and the cooperation between universities and research centres on the one hand and the automotive industry on the other.

This conceptual paper introduces the important link between law and knowledge resources. We analyse the three key types of institutions: common law, civil law, and social norms, conventions and how they define the nature of property rights for knowledge resources and assets. Knowledge, because of its intangible nature and value, raises fundamental issues of, measurement and property rights that do not arise for more traditional, tangible assets. We provide a conceptual analysis on how to measure and assess the value of property rights for knowledge assets and knowledge networks. A key conclusion from our analysis is that informal institutions such as social norms and conventions are relatively superior to legal institutions such as common law and civil law in the analysis of property rights of knowledge assets and knowledge networks.

This study aims to review the effects of intellectual capital on enterprises' sustainable growth and proposes a research agenda to the literature. Seven relevant studies published in journals indexed in the Web of Science and Scopus were selected and reviewed by systematically searching the relevant database. The study applied the co-occurrence technique by the VOSviewer application to detect the limitations of prior studies. Review results reveal that intellectual capital is measured by many different methods and comprises many components. Most empirical studies concluded the positive effect of enterprises’ intellectual capital on sustainable growth. However, others only find out the general effect of intellectual capital on sustainable growth or the effect of some components of intellectual capital on sustainable growth. Building upon such research gaps, the study proposes a model for such a relationship and the moderating role of the management experience of the top management team on the association to improve the robustness of future studies in the field.

Determinants of Firm Performance and Growth During Economic Recession: The Case of Central and Eastern European Countries

This research investigates the effect of intellectual capital on sustainable growth and investigates the moderating role of green innovation strategy in the relationship between intellectual capital and sustainable growth. This research collected 20 companies based on purposive sampling of all non-financial companies on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) period 2017-2020. The results show that intellectual capital has a negative and significant effect on sustainable growth. The findings also show that green innovation strategy is able to moderate the relationship between intellectual capital and sustainable growth. This research recommends positive values ​​in the green innovation strategy to control intellectual capital in order not to threaten the company's sustainability.

In the article explores the protection of intellectual property rights in the European Union. Attention is paid to the provisions Directive 2004/48/EC On the protection of intellectual property rights. The application of this Directive 2004/48/EC is studied as at the general European level, and the features of the legal application of the directive in the legislation of individual EU member states are studied. In this article says that the main goal of this Directive is to create an effective mechanism for the protection of intellectual property rights in the common European space (EU), for the further de­velopment of an innovative economy. The analysis of the peculiarities of enforcement practice in the implementation of the EU-2004/48/EU Directive in certain EU mem­ber states (Hungary, Austria, etc.), identifies the main issues related to the applica­tion of the provisions of the above-mentioned Directive, in particular, points to the dif­ferent understanding of «additional payments» in some EU member states: Germany, Czech Republic. There is in practice the question of the question of how to obtain the creator of supplementary payments (compensation). So, in Austria, the Czech Repub­lic, Germany, Romania, the basis for determining the amount of additional compensa­tion is double the amount of royalty. In 2016, the European Commission prepared a new report on the enforcement of intellectual property rights in EU member states. In this report, the Commission emphasizes that the IPR procedures contained in EU/2004/48 have greatly contributed to raising the level of protection of intellectual property rights in the EU, contributing to the creation of a unified legal framework. The report also states that the Directive is consistently and effectively integrated into the right of EU member states. Now (o date), the provisions of EU/2004/48 Directive have been implemented in virtually all EU member states. For example, in Latvia — the Law «On Trademarks and Geographical Names» (as of 010.010.2016), the Law «On Patents» (as of 01.01.2016), the Law «On Copyright» (as of 01.01.2014) ; in Lithuania — the Law «On Industrial Designs» IX-1181 (as of July 1, 2008); Romania — Law «On the Protection of Industrial Property Rights» No. 280/2005; Spain — The Law «On Protection of Intellectual Property and the Settlement of Sim­plification of the Application of EU Procedures» No. 19/2006 of 05.06.2006, as well as the corresponding amendments were made to the Law of Spain «On Civil Procedure» No. 1/2000 of January 7, 2000; Greece — Law on Transfer of Technologies, Removals and Innovations No. 1733/1987; Hungary — Law on the Protection of Trademarks and Geographical Indications.An analysis of the implementation of the Directive leads to the conclusion EU / 2004/48 Directive has become widely implemented in the European space and is an actual document for EU member states in their system of legal protection of intellec­tual property rights.

Despite mortality improvements across Europe, premature mortality notably persists in Central and East European countries. This study is aimed to assess premature mortality variations across Central and East European countries from 1970 to 2019, employing both classical premature mortality indicators and the more nuanced lifespan disparity indicators. Specifically, the analysis utilised the proportion of deaths up to the age of 65, lifespan disparity, and an age threshold derived from lifespan disparity to explore mortality trends. The findings reveal a stable reduction in premature mortality within Central European and Baltic countries, contrasting with the pronounced fluctuations experienced by East European countries. Remarkably, Czechia, Slovakia, and Estonia demonstrating the most significant progress in mitigating premature deaths. The trajectory of premature mortality in Central and Eastern European nations underscores the influence of socioeconomic crises and distinct alcohol consumption patterns on mortality trends. The study highlights the limitations of employing a static age threshold of 65 years in analysis of premature mortality, which fails to capture the full scope of premature mortality realities, particularly among females. However, the traditional metric of deaths before age 65 provides a broadly understandable measure, the nuanced insights offered by lifespan disparity and its derived age threshold enhance our understanding of premature mortality dynamics. Recognising the strengths and limitations of each indicator is essential for advancing our grasp of premature mortality and for refining the development and execution of targeted public health interventions throughout Europe.

This study aims to evaluate the impact of Intellectual Capital on the Sustainable Growth Rate of Indian Agribusiness companies. Intellectual Capital plays a vital role in the global agriculture business. Data is collected from 17 Agribusiness companies engaged explicitly in pesticides and fertilizers between 2011 and 2022, using Prowessiq (CMIE) and financial reports. The Extended Value-Added Intellectual Capital (E-VAIC) model is employed to measure Intellectual Capital. The System Generalized Method of Moments (S-GMM) regression method is employed for data analysis. The results revealed that Innovation Capital Efficiency and Human Capital Efficiency are the most significant variables that affect the Sustainable Growth of Indian Agribusiness companies. The other Intellectual Capital variables, such as Relational Capital Efficiency and Structural Capital Efficiency, positively impact the Sustainable Growth Rate. The study concludes that Indian Agribusiness companies must recognize the importance of Intellectual Capital resources and invest in them to achieve long- term corporate growth.

FISHERIES DEVELOPMENT AND THE FORMATION OF THE FISH PRODUCTS MARKET IN UKRAINE AND IN THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES