Accession countries enjoy net inflows

Fund manager's comment

Just six months after the accession of 10 additional countries into the European Union, the largest ...

Just six months after the accession of 10 additional countries into the European Union, the largest countries are already seeing the benefits of EU membership. They have all enjoyed net inflows of funds from the European budget, which in turn supports local currencies that have appreciated against the euro and the US dollar. We also see an increasing number of companies moving their manufacturing base to new EU member countries as they can enjoy cheaper labour and lower taxes. While stronger local currencies seem to be a concern, if we look at exports, all these countries still record e...