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Management report
its consumption by only 0.2 per cent. One reason for this was the
slight decline in real disposable household incomes (–0.4 per
cent). Mildly positive growth contributions were provided by pub-
lic-sector consumption (+0.8 per cent), gross asset investments
(+0.5 per cent) and net exports (+0.4 per cent).
• At 0.8 per cent, the inflation rate in 2015 was – as in the previous
years – higher than in the eurozone (+0.1 per cent).
• The overall government budget balance improved significantly to
–1.6 per cent of gross domestic product (having been –2.7 per
cent in the previous year).
• The current account surplus increased from 2.0 per cent to 2.7
per cent.
Unemployment and supply of labour increase
Employment developed in a robust manner despite the sluggish
economic climate. The number of employees, for example, in-
creased by 0.7 per cent compared with the previous year. Of great-
er economic significance, however, is the number of hours worked:
these almost stagnated in 2015 (+0.1 per cent) because the part-
time ratio, in particular, increased substantially. Their proportion
reached another new all-time high in the second quarter at 27.6
per cent. In a contrary development, the number of full-time em-
ployees decreased slightly. According to Eurostat, moreover, un-
employment increased from 5.6 per cent in 2014 to 5.8 per cent in
2015. The supply of manpower likewise increased and, primarily as
a result of the migration developments, will increase further in 2016
and in the following year by an overall figure of some 50,000 addi-
tional persons.
Private consumption as driver of growth in
2016
Experts in Austria expect the country’s economic growth to ac-
celerate to 1.9 per cent in 2016, largely as a result of private con-
sumption. One prerequisite of this is the 2016 tax reform, which
will provide a discernible easing of the burden on net incomes. At
the same time, the public expenditure on asylum seekers and ac-
knowledged refugees in the form of transfer payments is leading to
an increase in nominal household incomes. Although the increase
in inflation is dampening the trend in real incomes to some extent,
the growth in private consumption is nevertheless likely to acceler-
ate to 1.6 per cent.
Tyrol is faring better than Austria
Tyrol’s economy has shown itself to be strong both in 2015 and at
the start of 2016, and is performing better than the Austrian econ-
omy. Real economic growth in Tyrol for 2015 is likely to be 1.3 per
cent (Austria: 0.9 per cent). In the forecasts for 2016, too, Tyrol with
its 2.1 per cent growth is ahead of Austria (1.9 per cent). The differ-
ence between the respective unemployment figures is much wid-
er: while the unemployment rate in Tyrol is likely to increase slightly
from 7.0 per cent to 7.3 per cent, experts on the Austrian side are
expecting a steeper increase from 9.1 per cent to 9.7 per cent (na-
tional calculation method).
Tyrolean economy in robust condition
The business climate index (December 2015) was well above av-
erage at 34 percentage points in the long-term comparison of De-
cember figures. At that time, according to leading Tyrolean busi-
ness barometers, 46 per cent of the leading companies surveyed
described the economic situation as good, while just seven per
cent were dissatisfied. The export economy in particular is optimis-
tic about 2016. Precisely half of exporting enterprises expect sales
to increase in the current financial year. The positive mood is com-
ing from the large-scale enterprises, while small and medium-sized
companies are more guarded.
Uncertainty inhibits Tyrol’s tourism firms
A total of 30 per cent of Tyrolean tourism companies are expect-
ing gross profits to deteriorate in the winter season. In addition, the
2016 tax reform will lead to increasing burdens (increase in VAT as
from April 2016 and mandatory cash registers) that are consider-
ably more onerous than in other sectors. The concomitant uncer-
tainty of the region’s tourism firms is putting a discernible brake on
their readiness to make new investments: 58 per cent of tourism
enterprises are going to invest less than in the recent past in the
first half of 2016, with only 18 per cent aiming to increase their in-
vestments. This weak investment climate, however, is not specific
to Tyrol or tourism but is in evidence throughout the Austrian econ-
omy.