Yesterday I wrote about the EU economy being 20 years behind America’s. I also let it be know that they were only 20 years behind us if everything remained the same as it is now.
Well, here is another report that the variables are changing for the EU and not in a good way.
Lower wage costs and less regulation in eastern Europe are luring U.S. manufacturers away from Germany, according to a new survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Despite the current government’s welfare and labor reforms, countries in eastern Europe continue to gain ground on Germany in the race to attract investment from U.S. companies.
Eastern Europe has become the most important region to invest in for 26 percent of the 70 U.S. companies based in Germany who took part in the annual survey released on Tuesday. Last year only 13 percent listed eastern Europe as their top investment area. Sixty-five percent of the 50 largest U.S. companies in Germany based on sales participated in the survey, including Ford, Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola.
Production in particular is being moved to eastern European countries, especially in the automobile and industrial goods sector. But services such as call centers and information technology departments are also being moved out of Germany.
Now the bulk of these companies are already established in Europe, so there is no way to legitimately cry ‘OMG! They’re Outsourcing!’ And even if there were, the items produced over there are either staying over there or are benefiting us here. So we’ll have none of that.
This is going to just slay the western EU countries and their already high unemployment rate.
I still give the Euro trinket coin 5 years until it becomes the Peso.
Found at the Interested Participant