The conference intends to bring together experts from academia, international institutions, central banks, government institutions and the private sector to discuss the future of industry in the European Union and South East Europe. The discussion will be initiated by invited speeches and presented conference
papers.

The Institute of Economics, Zagreb invites researchers and other specialists to submit their abstracts by 1 July 2013.
Conference Topic: Industry is still the most important element of Europe’s economic structures. It accounts for a major part of exports and R&D investments and it creates additional jobs in the services sector as well. However, industry has been severely hit by the recent economic crisis, which has also revealed many of its present weaknesses. Therefore, it is important to explore the present‐day performance of Europe’s industry, to identify problems affecting industry in both the EU and South East Europe, and to try to propose the most appropriate elements of the future industrial policy.

In such a context, possible topics include (without being restricted to):
‐ is industry still indispensable for economic growth?
‐ what have been the main characteristics of industrial enterprises which have performed best during the economic crisis?
‐ what are the main obstacles to industrial development in the EU and SEE?
‐ can the industries of the EU and SEE be competitive on the global market and how?
‐ what kind of infrastructure should be provided by the public sector in order to enhance the development of the competitive industrial sector?
‐ how to secure knowledge and skills for a new industrial development?
‐ what industrial policies could be the most efficient in reinforcing industrial growth?
‐ how to develop the industrial sector in a sustainable way?