Economy of Burgenland

Burgenland’s economy has been shaped by one major factor: Burgenland’s position as a borderland region. Industrial production, which is generally declining and accounted for slightly more than 31% of the province’s total creation of wealth in 1996, was long focused on the processing of local mineral resources and agricultural products; currently, the electrical and electronics industry (1992: 20.4%), clothing (1992:16.7%) and the food and beverage industry (1992:22.2%) account for fairly large shares in value added, while almost two-thirds are accounted for by the services sector and only 3.4% by agriculture and forestry. However, as a result of structural problems Burgenland’s economy is still clearly behind the Austrian average, as has been shown by its distinctly smaller share in GNP, a high commuter rate and a higher than average unemployment rate (7.5% in 1992 and 9 % in 1998).