Prospects for the future product portfolio of Austrian foreign trade

This study was conducted as part of the FIW - Research Focus
International Economy and was commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Labor and Economy and prepared in cooperation with the Center for Collective Learning at the Institute for Artificial and Natural Intelligence (ANITI) of the University of Toulouse.

The aim of the study is to examine the long-term and current development of the Austrian export industry using the concepts of path dependency and economic complexity. Successful examples of the upgrading of the product portfolio over the last two decades are to be identified in order to derive lessons for Austria. The study also analyses current specializations in order to identify opportunities for the further development and future potential of Austrian foreign trade.

In the last two decades, Austria has not only almost tripled its exports (measured in EUR), but also significantly increased the economic complexity of its export portfolio. This is due in particular to the sharp rise in exports of chemical products, various special tools, measuring instruments and metal and plastic products.

The study highlights future potential for the Austrian export industry, particularly in the life sciences, chemicals and pharmaceuticals sectors. There are already many specialization advantages, particularly in the area of pharmaceutical products, which may make it possible to benefit from spillover effects in organic chemical products.