THE ECONOMIST: 10 YEARS AFTER EU ENLARGEMENT LITHUANIA SHOWS A REMARKABLE PROSPERITY GROWTH RATE
Ten years ago today, the European Union expanded the most in its history. A community with 15 states became one of 25 (it now has 28 members). The expansion was mainly eastward, absorbing eight countries formerly controlled by or part of the Soviet Union, and unleashing big waves of migration to the west. But the EU also acquired two small Mediterranean states: Cyprus and Malta. How have all ten fared since then?
There are four clear winners in the prosperity league (see the diagram above). Two Baltic countries, Lithuania and Latvia, together with Poland and Slovakia, have made gains of over 40% in GDP per person. Lithuania’s GDP per person has increased by almost 55%, scoring the most impressive growth rate among all the new member states.
The advances in the three Baltic economies (including Estonia’s 30% gain) are particularly notable since all three experienced savage downturns in 2009, after the financial crisis.
See full article at: http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2014/05/daily-chart
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