F43 - Economic Growth of Open EconomiesReturn

The international competitiveness rankings can be seen as a way of evaluating countries' future economic potential and opportunities for further development and growth. The discussion of one clear definition of the term "national competitiveness" can be considered a "never-ending story" without an unambiguous generally accepted result. In every composite indicator analysis, the final index is the outcome of a number of choices: the framework (usually driven by theoretical models and experts' opinions), the indicators to be included, their normalisation, the weights assigned to each indicator, and the aggregation method. This paper is based on evaluating results of the Visegrad group countries (V4), Germany, and Austria. We take into account the sense and the methodology of Porter's Diamond model (SD model) and the Nine-factor model (9F model). The main aim of this paper is the identification of similarities and differences between these two models and the discussion of suitability of these models for countries with different economic characteristics.

The objective of the study is to analyse the Czech position in the field of global competitiveness. In the past, the only data used for evaluating the position of a country were "hard data": data that were measurable. Nowadays, many research institutions as well as scientists have come with a new idea. Not only hard data are important for a country's position in the competitiveness rank, but also soft data have to be taken into account. The General Competitiveness Index (GCI), used for measuring competitiveness, has been replaced with the Sustainability-adjusted Competitiveness Index (SCI). Two sustainability pillars are added to the general competitiveness: the social sustainability pillar and the environmental sustainability pillar. This study analyses the GCI and the SCI in the context of sustainability. The main objective is to find out how these two sustainability pillars influence the competitiveness position of the Czech Republic. The method used in the study is an analysis and comparison of the hard and soft data, which means that it is based on a multidimensional analysis used by the WEF and the IMD. The study confirms that there is an increasing influence of these soft - qualitative - data.

Economic growth and economic level belong among the most monitored economic figures as they give evidence of the level of both the economic activity and performance of a country as well as of the level of the economic development at which a given state or region finds itself. Within the EU environment as well as in the individual Member States, the issue of economic growth belongs among fiercely discussed topics. The economic growth of the European Union in the last decade was lagging behind most other centres of the world economy. This, however, does not mean that all the EU countries were characterised by a weak growth performance. This paper focuses on the evaluation of the trends and main factors of the economic growth and the processes of real convergence of the EU Member base in the last decade. This paper should also provide answers on which way the recently implemented Eastern enlargement and the world economic crisis influenced the economic dynamics of the old and new Member countries.

In this paper we systematize existing theoretical and empirical, often contradictory, knowledge of leading international economists and foreign institutions about reciprocal and causal relations between income distribution, economic growth and income poverty, in order to highlight the importance of income distribution in the economic system, the causes and consequences of income distribution at the macroeconomic and microeconomic levels, which knowledge is relevant for both current economic theory and economic policy.
In this paper we seek to answer questions such as: Why is it important to be interested in income inequality? How to relate income inequality and economic growth? Does economic growth affect income inequality or can income inequality increase or decrease the rate of growth? Is the initial level of property or income important for macroeconomic performance and macroeconomic growth? How can the initial level of wealth and income inequality influence the effects of economic growth on poverty reduction? Is there an effective state policy to reduce or eliminate income poverty? Can a government reduce poverty only by promoting economic growth, or is it desirable to choose a combination of growth-redistribution policies?

The purpose of the study is to analyse and evaluate the position and trend of international competitiveness of the Central European EU countries, and the results of the influence of their EU membership on the competitiveness of the chosen countries. The study method is based on a complex set of multidimensional analyses using, firstly, quantitative indicators, namely input and output indicators, and secondly, qualitative evaluations. The results of the empirical evaluations had to monitor the changing positions of the new EU Member States in the International Competitiveness Scoreboard: Yearbooks of IMD Lausanne; Reports of WEF Geneve. The study conclusions confirmed the influence of the involvement of the New Member States in the common and shared EU policies (common trade policy, agricultural policy, liberalization of the movement of capital and services within the EU, EU regional and structural policy, and other common policies) on the increasing competitiveness of the new EU Member States.

The aim of this paper is to describe the current situation of the least developed countries (LDCs). After briefly explaining their historical development, this paper presents the current definition criteria for LDCs as well as their up-to-date list. The position of the LDCs within the international community is briefly explained on the example of changing strategies of international development partners towards achieving progress in the LDCs. Finally, the progress of the LDCs towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is assessed. The assessment shows that if the current development is not accelerated, the majority of the MDGs will not be met by 2015 as planned. In the recent past it was thought that the right way to speed up the economic and social developments in the LDCs is their growing engagement in international trade. This paper shows empirical evidence of the impacts international trade has had on the LDCs' economies in the recent past. It proves again that the solution for the LDCs does not lie in any single measure. To significantly decrease the proportion of the population living in poverty in any country, the country must be able to provide its people with a sufficient number of paid employment opportunities.