Trade Integration

Abstract

Trade integration of the South East European economies with the rest of the world in general and with the EU in particular is of critical importance for their long-term growth prospects. For countries with the size as well as the extent of development as those in SEE, the prospects for strong and sustained economic recovery are closely linked to their ability to compete and thus attain access to foreign markets, especially those in developed countries such as the EU states. Thus, openness and greater trade integration of the countries in this region with the rest of the world is a vital precondition for growth and development. Furthermore, trade expansion and the removal of barriers would effectively enlarge the size of local markets and increase, as a result, their attractiveness to foreign investors, which would enhance the prospects for higher growth even further.