A Comparative Analysis of Twenty-Eight Transition Economies in Europe and Asia

Two senior World Bank economists provide a broad comparative overview of transition economies, covering the former Soviet Union, East Central Europe, China, and Vietnam. In the process, they assess the experience of each of the 20 European and 8 Asian countries up to 1996, focusing on the wide variation in exposure to economic and political liberalization and distinguishing growing and recovering economies from the lagging. Based on recent measures of key macroeconomic indicators, the authors' classification and analysis embrace the impact of specific factors (e.g., different duration and intensity of reforms; exposure to regional tensions) on economic growth and inflation. Also included in the study is a comparison of inter-industry linkages and macroeconomic feedback in Russia and China. 9 figures, 8 tables, 25 references. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: P21, P41, P51, P52.