The first annual report on the euro area provides an economic analysis of issues raised in the annual statement on the euro area. Chapter 1 focuses on macroeconomic developments, highlighting the factors driving the economic recovery and summarising the upside and downside risks to the economic outlook. Chapter 2 explores the positive contribution of macroeconomic policies to the euro-area's economic recovery and the need for an adjustment in the macroeconomic-policy setting in view of the improved outlook. Chapter 3 discusses the importance of well-functioning product, labour and capital markets for a dynamic and smooth functioning EMU and their contribution to dealing with unwarranted cross-country growth and inflation differences. Chapter 4 describes the emergence of the euro as a global currency, the euro-area's developing role in international financial institutions and fora and the challenges posed to the world economy by unsustainable current-account imbalances. Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Central Bank. COM(2006)392 final.The first Annual Statement on the Euro Area calls for a prudent macroeconomic policy mix delivering price stability and reduced fiscal imbalances in view of the more positive economic outlook for the euro area, coupled with structural reforms to improve the functioning of product, labour and capital markets and measures to deepen the Internal Market. On external issues, the need for the euro area to project a strong voice on the world economic stage is emphasised in view of the growing importance of the euro as a global currency and the challenges posed by, inter alia, global imbalances.

Over the past decade European economic integration has seen considerable institutional success, but the economic performance of the EU has been varied. While macroeconomic stability has improved and an emphasis on cohesion preserved, the EU economic system has not delivered satisfactory growth performance. This book is the report of a high-level group commissioned by the President of the European Commission to review the EU economic system and propose a blueprint for an economic system capable of delivering faster growth along with stability and cohesion. It assesses the EU s economic performance, examines the challenges facing the EU in the coming years, and presents a series of recommendations. The report views Europe's unsatisfactory growth performance during the last decades as a symptom of its failure to transform into an innovation-based economy. It has now become clear that the context in which economic policies have been developed has changed fundamentally over the past thirty years. A system built around the assimilation of existing technologies, mass production generating economics of scale, and an industrial structure dominated by large firms with stable markets and long term employment patterns no longer delivers in the world of today, characterized by economic globalization and strong external competition. What is needed now is more opportunity for new entrants, greater mobility of employees within and across firms, more retraining, greater reliance on market financing, and higher investment in both R&D and higher education. This requires a massive and urgent change in economic policies in Europe.

This collection of expert articles highlights the standards and practices concerning sustainability reporting among companies in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Due to the growing interest in corporate social responsibility issues, sustainability reporting has become increasingly common among businesses that claim to adhere to certain social, environmental and economic standards. While it can be observed that sustainability reporting is widely practiced in Western and Northern European countries, only few studies have been conducted on this topic in the CEE region. Drawing on a major empirical study involving researchers from 10 different CEE countries, this book addresses the status quo of sustainability reporting, outlines future prospects and provides essential recommendations for practitioners.