Integrating with the global economy : the evolution of export profiles of the European Union’s eastern periphery (2000-2021)

Abstract

How have Central and Eastern European countries integrated into global production networks since the early 2000s? Have European Union accession, the Great Recession of 2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic significantly altered their export profiles? Using cluster analysis for 11 economies between 2000 and 2021, we uncover persistent differentiation and deepening specialisation over time. Czechia, Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia emerge as the manufacturing hub of the region. When broader exports are accounted for, these economies look similar to Poland, Croatia and Romania. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Bulgaria form a separate group that relies on more labour- and resource-intensive manufacturing goods, commodities and services.