Openness to Globalization and Regional Growth Patterns in CEE Countries: From the EU Accession to the Economic Crisis

Abstract In the last decades a deep process of institutional reforms and economic reorganization took place in central and easternEUcountries (CEE). These changes occurred in a context of general economic integration. On the one hand, theEuropeanUnion enlargement programme was launched and allCEEcountries applied to becomeEUmember between 1994 and 1996. On the other hand, the globalization of the world economy characterized this historical phase. This article explores to what extent openness to global markets mediated the impact ofEUintegration on the economic performance ofCEEregions in different periods. The periods examined are defined by the main institutional changes that occurred on the road towardsEUintegration. Results show that globally open regions performed better than the others, at least in the first two periods analyzed.