| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Title | COM |
| Series Details | (2012) 582 final (10.10.12) |
| Publication Date | 10/10/2012 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
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At a time when financial problems persist, Europe needs its real economy more than ever to underpin the recovery of economic growth and jobs. Our industry is well placed to assume this role: Europe is a world-leader in many strategic sectors such as automotive, aeronautics, engineering, space, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Industry still accounts for 4/5 of Europe's exports and 80% of private sector R&D investment comes from manufacturing. However, the continuing economic crisis has put Europe's industry under pressure: production is 10% lower than before the crisis and over 3 million industrial jobs have been lost. Consumer and business confidence are low. Problems in the banking sector make it difficult to access finance. Investments are held back and factories are under pressure to close. Europe needs to reverse the declining role of industry in Europe for the 21st century. This is the only way to deliver sustainable growth, create high-value jobs and solve the societal challenges that we face. To achieve this, a comprehensive vision is needed, focusing on investment and on innovation, but also mobilising all the levers available at EU level, notably the single market, trade policy, SME policy, competition policy, environmental and research policy in favour or European companies' competitiveness. This Communication proposes a partnership between the EU, its Member States and industry to dramatically step up investment into new technologies and give Europe a competitive lead in the new industrial revolution. With the renewed industrial strategy outlined in this Communication, the Commission seeks to reverse the declining role of industry in Europe from its current level of around 16% of GDP to as much as 20% by 2020. This should be driven by substantial recovery in investment levels (gross capital formation and investment in equipment), an expansion of the trade in goods in the Internal Market (to reach 25% of GDP in 2020) and a significant increase in the number of SMEs exporting to third countries. |
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| Source Link | Link to Main Source http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2012:0582:FIN:EN:PDF |
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| Subject Categories | Business and Industry |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
