F10 - Trade: GeneralReturn

China is rapidly becoming one of the most significant trading partners of EU countries. This is as much the case for the 11 Central and Eastern European countries (CEE11) which entered the EU in 2004, 2007 and 2013 as for the older members. This paper sets out to examine data obtained from the Eurostat database concerning trade between the CEE11 and China between 2004 and 2014 in an attempt to clarify two main questions. Firstly, are there any differences between individual CEE countries' trade with China during the last decade? Secondly, have the Visegrad (V4) countries (Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia) obtained any advantages over each other or over the other CEE11 countries? The Eurostat data, while limited in some aspects, suggest that all the eleven nations, despite variations, are struggling with trade balance deficits and therefore need to cooperate rather than compete concerning trade with China.

The paper deals with the issues of gravity models applied in the field of trade flow analysis. Applied variables, assumptions of their impacts, problems of gravity equations and their resolving (namely the endogeneity problem, the heterogeneity problem, and the identification problem) are defined in this paper. The paper provides a detailed overview of selected gravity model publications in scientific papers with an impact factor since 2000. According to the document analysis, it is clear that panel data are the most commonly used type of data in the 21st century. Fixed effects models are recommended. The choice of variables depends on the subject being examined and on the aim of the analysis. Correct model specification and inclusion of relevant variables are highly important. The results were elaborated as part of the research project IGA 20121050 "Spatial regional market integration with agricultural raw materials".