Abstract
The European Union (EU) can be regarded as one economic region and this way its competitiveness can be defined and examined. However, there are huge tensions within the European region that raise questions about whether there exists a European economic region and thus “European competitiveness” at all. Unlike some of its largest competitors, Europe still has not overcome the financial and economic crisis that burst out in 2008. In fact, Europe is now struggling with its own crisis, being rather a new chapter than the natural continuation of the global processes. The whole story of the European integration has been the story of economic and social cohesion. In this respect, there does exist a European social market model. But there is a huge dilemma related to this model that has to be faced: on one hand, high European social standards can only be met if competitiveness is maintained but, on the other hand, these expectations on behalf of European societies appear as a mere disadvantage in cost-competitiveness in the global arena. The issue is complex and calls for balanced and sophisticated thinking. In this sense, European competitiveness is the competitiveness of the whole European social market model—highly challenged these days.
Highlights
Competitiveness is a concept which is often referred to but not at all easy to grab
World Economic Forum (WEF), the organisation that publishes the Global Competitiveness Report every year, competitiveness is defined as “the set of institutions, policies, and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country” ([1], p. 4)
The logic followed by the WEF is that productivity is the key factor in competitiveness as it determines the level of prosperity that an economy can reach
Summary
Competitiveness is a concept which is often referred to but not at all easy to grab. According to the. World Economic Forum (WEF), the organisation that publishes the Global Competitiveness Report every year, competitiveness is defined as “the set of institutions, policies, and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country” The logic followed by the WEF is that productivity is the key factor in competitiveness as it determines the level of prosperity that an economy can reach. A more competitive economy is more likely to achieve sustainable growth. The European economic and social model is unsustainable: income levels and social security contributions cannot be guaranteed without a solid basis of sustainable economic growth. There is a Europe-wide agreement on the necessity to find the sources of sustainable growth. We make an attempt to contribute to the solution of the intellectual crisis of how to solve the crisis
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