What is the financial sector’s contribution to the Austrian economy?

Even though its contribution to the economy has decreased since the onset of the crisis, the Austrian financial sector still accounts for about 4% of value added and about 3% of the labor force. In rendering its services, the financial sector relies on inputs from the real economy, above all legal, accounting, head office and consulting services. In Austria, the domestic financial sector is still the main funding source for the real sector, even if its share has diminished over the past decade, with the decline having been somewhat more distinct on the asset side than on the liability side. For the financial sector, financing the real sector was becoming less relevant until the crisis hit.