Business calls for end to EU ‘crisis’

European businesses have called for a more active approach to economic growth to help overcome “the lingering mood of crisis in the EU”.

Christoph Leitl, President of Eurochambres, which represents chambers of commerce throughout the EU, said that business remained “cautiously positive” about future growth.

“But this is clearly not sufficient for a sound economic recovery.  We do not need stabilisation and a wait-and-see approach but a clear upward trend.”

Speaking at the launch of the association’s annual economy survey, Leitl said that Thursday’s euro interest rate rise had sent the wrong message about growth. 

“We need a European Central Bank that pursues a policy that supports Europe’s economic pick-up and not one which focuses only on price stability.”

Leitl also urged EU negotiators to do all they can to find a compromise at the WTO talks in Hong Kong later this month.

“The issues under negotiation in the Doha Round are of crucial importance to the economies of developed and developing countries.”

“Insufficient market access, opaque customs procedures and risks such as the non-enforcement of intellectual property rights are still preventing businesses from realising their potential in international markets.”

The Eurochambres survey of more than 90,000 companies from 27 European companies shows that the European economy is expected to be something of a mixed bag in 2006.

Business confidence, domestic demand and export sales are expected to decline compared to 2005, but turnover and employment levels  should show a slight increase.

Eurozone business confidence is likely to remain stable in 2006, but British business leaders are increasingly pessimistic about the chances of growth outside the euro area.

Turnover, meanwhile, is expected to grow in line with the European Commission’s own forecasts of between 1.9 per cent and 2.1 per cent in 2006, with export sales in particular expected to increase.

Businesses remain broadly sceptical about commission measures to boost employment throughout Europe, with most countries predicting that economic growth is likely to come without a corresponding increase in jobs.

The survey shows that four countries – Germany, Hungary, Portugal and Slovenia – even expect to see increasing unemployment in 2006.

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