EU10 adjusting well to global financial turmoil: World Bank

AFP, June, 2008

WARSAW (AFP) — Ten ex-communist European Union newcomer states have "adjusted relatively well" to recent global financial stress, oil and food price spikes and slowing growth, the World Bank said on Wednesday.

The bank said in its EU10 Regular Economic Report that although economic growth was set to slow in most ex-communist newcomer states, the overall pace of growth had remained "reasonably robust".

The report focused on 2004 EU entrants the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia and 2007 members Bulgaria and Romania.

The report said that these 10 countries "have adjusted relatively well to the ongoing financial turmoil, higher and rising commodity prices and inflation, and outlook for weak economic growth in mature markets."

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania show the most marked slowing of growth and spikes in inflation, but the main author, World Bank expert Ivailo Izvorski, said that moderate cooling was ...