The major industrialized countries presently find themselves at different stages of the business cycle. While in the U. S. A. the long awaited upturn seems to have started, activity is slowing in Europe and Japan. Forecasts of GDP growth in 1992 have to be revised downwards to 1¾ percent for...

Liberalization of East-West trade since the breakdown of communism in 1989 has seen Austria as a net gainer. Its net exports with the East increased considerably, resulting in a trade surplus of ATS 16.5 billion in 1994, after years of balanced trade before 1989. Although in some sectors the...