economy

The objective of the study \"The Seen and the Unseen Effects of the Entry of Modern Retail1 in Bulgaria: Facts Against Myths\" is to examine a number of popular claims that have been circulating in the media, and public debates. They often become grounds for political action and even legislative initiatives against modern retail formats.

In Slovakia, political discourse around Central Europe continues to be dominated by the growing popularity of extreme solutions. This trend is expressly demonstrated by current popular preferences attributed to parties on both the extreme left and right in all countries of the central European region.

Two interesting debates are being led simultaneously in Slovakia. One on subsidies to support the mining of lignite in the upper Nitra region and the other on the unconditional basic income for all. The interconnection between the two could bring so many positive effects that I am left to wonder why nobody has thought of this so far.

Business in Ukraine is slowly recovering from the economic crisis that hit the country several years ago. Entrepreneurs have little trust to the government but plan to speed up their growth and want the authorities to provide fair and favorable conditions for businesses.

Gross domestic product is undoubtedly a useful indicator of how the economy is performing. It shows one aspect of the economy that can be used to interpret a general level of “health.” However, while GDP is comparable to a simple doctor’s check-up, it isn’t as in-depth as a yearly physical.

Poles do not know how much and on what the Polish state spends their money. Meanwhile, the structure and size of public spending have a direct impact on their daily lives by influencing the level of taxation and the availability of public services.

Let´s be honest with ourselves: the Slovak economy and the economies of other countries on the brink of the potential core have fundamentally different parameters. What we share is the euro and our desire to belong to the core. However, this is not enough.

Restrictions on cash payments are in place in many countries around the world and an EU-wide restriction is looming. However, cash plays a number of important roles in the economy. To counter the one-sided public discussion about cash, INESS published in English Why to Keep the Cash Economy.

INESS has been one of the few opponents of the regulation. We included the abolition of the cash payment restrictions in our long-term competitiveness program Top20. Also, thanks to our advocacy, the (currently) biggest opposition party included a partial easing of the regulations (rising the EUR 5,000 limit to EUR 15,000) in its 2016 election program.

Board remuneration regulation is essentially a two stage issue. Firstly, there should be transparency concerning the remuneration packages of executive and non-executive board member and directors. And secondly, shareholders should have a level of control over the process of board remuneration determination.