PHOTO: The percentage of potential investors in Croatia fell from 80 to 68 percent

Forecasts for the growth of the Croatian economy for this year are significantly worse than last year, according to a survey conducted by the German-Croatian Chamber of Commerce in February among 140 member companies.

The results of the survey were presented on Thursday by the Chamber’s president Nicolas Baron Adamovich, the Chamber’s director Sven Thorsten Potthoff, and members of the management board of the German-Croatian Industrial and Trade Chamber Davor Tomašković (CEO of Hrvatski Telekom) and Dorotea Effenberger (CEO of Tahograf).

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The main source of dissatisfaction continues to be the lack of reforms. The percentage of entrepreneurs willing to invest in Croatia has fallen from 80 to 68 percent compared to last year, while only 10 percent of surveyed companies believe that the economic situation in the country is good.

Only one-third of respondents believe that the economy is heading in the right direction (last year it was as high as 57 percent), while in contrast to Croatia, 37 percent rated business conditions in Central and Eastern European countries as good. A slight increase, 42 percent (eight percent more than in 2017), is expected in the area of exports, while a slight decline is anticipated in planned investments.

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The main shortcomings identified include high tax burdens, the tax system and administration, combating corruption and crime, legal uncertainty, and public administration. There are, of course, advantages – among other things, membership in the European Union, the academic education of workers, and good infrastructure.

As an investment destination, we have again ranked eighth out of 20 countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Regarding the introduction of the euro, 11 percent more companies than in the same period last year, or 57 percent, are in favor.

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Ultimately, Adamovich emphasized, the macroeconomic picture of Croatia is satisfactory, but this is primarily due to tourism and historically low interest rates. It is essential to implement structural reforms as soon as possible.