The economy of Slovakia – Week 3 – Anneleen Coppens

Time goes by so fast; I almost didn’t realize we already started our second week traveling!

To summarize our first week I can make it short: we had the time of our lives and this was only the beginning!

Today we entered Slovakia and as Julie already mentioned, we immediately noticed the fact that the economy of Slovakia is very dynamic.

While driving to our hotel we saw a lot of industrial zones where they produce automobiles and electronics. Our taxi driver said, back in the days, both industries attracted a large number of foreign investors. The raison was the cheap and skilled workforce, favorable tax rates, geographic location and relatively liberal labor code.

He had not ended his story yet when we saw a few giant factories such as Peugeot, Citroën, Kia, Sony Corp. and Samsung Corp.

Also the farmers play a big role in the Slovakian economy. Vineyards, orchards and pastures for stock are very important here.The crops they harvest are wheat, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, hops and also a lot of fruit.Since Slovakia has a varied terrain, the also have their mountains. They form an excellent opportunity for intensive sheep grazing.Besides their beautiful forests we also discovered a few mineral sources. I was told they’re rich in coal, high-grade iron ore, copper, manganese, lead, and zinc. I say healthy much!

As I already read in my travel guide, this country got separated from the Czech Republic in 1993. This resulted in significant economic reforms regarding taxation, healthcare, pension and social welfare systems.

Slovakia has been an EU member state since 2004 and adopted the euro currency at the beginning of 2009.

Around 5 o’clock in the afternoon, we arrived at our hotel. It’s in the capital of Slovakia and it’s also the largest financial center: Bratislava.

Today was quite a hectic day but I’m sure the rest of our trip here will be a great success!

Sleep tight –and don’t let the bedbugs bite-

Anneleen

Sources:

http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/een/007/article_5628_en.htm

http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/slovakia/slovakia_economy.html

http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0861130.html