The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies

Fifty years of know-how …

The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies – wiiw – is one of the principal centres for research on Central, East and Southeast Europe with 50 years of experience. Over the years, we have broadened our expertise, increasing our regional coverage – to European integration, the countries of Wider Europe and selected issues of the global economy – and expanding the research areas we work on. At present, our thematic work is focused on macroeconomic developments and structural change, international economics, labour markets and social issues, as well as on selected issues related to sectoral and regional economic developments. wiiw is an independent, non-profit institution. Our staff serves the public and clients alike, delivering economic analyses and research, forecasts, statistical data and policy advice. A package of our services is available for subscription (membership service).

… with an international staff …

We have a team of highly skilled professionals, most of whom are multilingual and have an intimate knowledge of the region. Our economists and statisticians are often native to and permanently in close contact with institutions, reseachers and policy makers in the countries they cover. Our economists closely follow developments in their respective countries and regions and are frequently involved in local policy debates. Our greatest strength lies in the application of comparative regional and cross-country analyses.

… reliable and up-to-date statistical data …

The institute is uniquely positioned thanks to its wide range of statistical databases and expertise in dealing with complex or ‘difficult’ datasets and data collection. Our analyses are based on primary sources and data obtained directly from the countries we cover. Our databases are updated in a timely manner and cross-checked with international databases. Our experience enables us to make educated judgements in solving issues such as breaks in time series and cross-country comparability problems, ultimately leading to consistent, comparable and reliable series of indicators. The high quality of our data enables us to perform long-term analyses that may also serve as a basis for assessments of future trends.

… linked to the international scientific community

We believe in teamwork and the exchange of information as the optimal means of securing outstanding analyses and forecasts. Close cooperation with an international network of academics helps us to challenge our views and ensures that our research orientation and methodologies are state-of-the-art.

Funding

The institute has a broad funding base that guarantees its independence. Core funding stems from a variety of Austrian public institutions. Out of a budget of around EUR 3.8 million in 2021, public subsidies accounted for 52%. The remaining budget comes mostly from income from research projects, where we are in competition with other national and international research institutions. Membership fees and the sale of data account for a further small part of our budget.

In 2021 wiiw received subsidies from the following bodies:

• Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance (EUR 792,000)

• Austrian Central Bank (EUR 600,000)

• City of Vienna (EUR 476,900)

• Federal Chamber of Labour (EUR 112,252)

• Association of Austrian Banks (EUR 6,000)

We are very grateful to the providers of this base funding. These subsidies allow us to compete successfully on the international research market for advanced projects in economics, and to formulate and present research conclusions that contribute to evidence-based policymaking in Austria and abroad.