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In this paper we aim to explore the conditioning effect of structural funds (SF) on regional growth in Greece for the period 1994–2006 by detecting if the ability of regions to convert any financial aid into welfare gains is related to certain region-specific characteristics. The analysis shows that, albeit that important financial aid has been channelled to the less-developed regions, the most advanced regions seem to have benefited more from it. Furthermore, we divide the SF into expenditure categories and conclude that the SF have a positive impact on growth only for those regions in which the regions' endowments are related to the expenditure received. This interaction of the expenditure categories with the characteristics of the recipient region accentuates the role of the 'identity' of each region to the impact of SF on regional growth, thereby signifying valuable policy implications.

This paper examines the degree of synchronicity in business cycles in Greek regions associated with specific spatial and economic characteristics that explain, to a large extent, synchronisation dynamics. We conducted an analysis of almost 30 years' (1980-2008) worth of data at the NUTSIII level (prefectures). We conclude that prefectures are more synchronised with the NUTSII regions than the national level, accentuating a regional (NUTSII) border effect. Moreover, the intensification of the integration process and the free operation of markets seem to diachronically affect the structural characteristics of the Greek regions and the geography of cyclical synchronisation. Our study revealed a two-stage integration in which in the first stage they are detected urbanisation economies, while in the second one localisation economies. The metropolitan region, apart from its prominent position in economic growth, shows a confined level of business synchronisation with the other regions, stressing Greece's pattern of economic and structural dualism.

The paper explores the spatial dynamics in the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) countries, in a period of significant transformations in their internal and external economic environment. Regional disparities are reported to be the net outcome of two opposite dynamics: a pro-cyclical pattern, on the one hand, with dynamic and developed regions growing faster in periods of expansion and slower in periods of recession, and a long-term spread effect, on the other, partly offsetting the cumulative impact of growth on space after some critical level of development. In this framework, expanding trade relations with the European Union advanced countries may be an additional source of spatially unbalanced growth and polarization for the ENP countries, as the costs and benefits of integration prove to be unevenly allocated in space. To the extent that growth and integration dynamics tend to polarize the ENP economic space, a set of critical policy questions arise.

International audience ; The aim of this paper is to investigate the influence of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) subsidies on agricultural (labour and total factor) productivity growth of EU regions during the period 2004–2012. The objective is to assess the impact of this policy on agricultural growth and competitiveness of regions, first in the aftermath of the fundamental reforms of the decoupling policy and second during the historic eastward enlargement of the EU, which deepened asymmetric spatial patterns and may have led to the CAP having a different spatial impact. The analysis uses an econometric approach based on an augmented Cobb-Douglas production function. The impact is proved to be mixed; positive when the change of subsidies with a 1-year lag is considered, which is related to farm strategies, and negative when the level of subsidies, which is based on reference data, is considered. In the case of the new member states, the effect is negative, confirming the CAP's incompatibility with the agricultural structures of the area.

The European Neighborhood Policy (ENP), launched in 2004, is a unified EU policy framework towards the EU neighboring countries (ENP countries). The objective of the ENP is to strengthen the prosperity, stability and security of the (enlarged) EU and the ENP countries, creating a "ring of friends" around the EU. Currently, the ENP consists of two sub-groups; the ENP East (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine) and the ENP South (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria and Tunisia). Even though the ENP is distinct from the process of EU enlargement, the ENP countries operate under conditions of "neighborhood Europeanization". This indicates a misfit between ENP demands, on the one hand, and ENP rewards, on the other. Given this misfit - and the concomitant skepticism about the ENP capacity to transfer EU values and rules to the neighboring countries - deep(er) economic (in particular, trade) integration between the EU economy and the ENP countries is considered to be a catalyst for the success of the ENP undertaking. The objective of the paper is to study the geography (i.e. the size, the composition and the direction) of EU-ENP trade, conducting an in-depth empirical analysis as regards the trade flows (i.e. imports and exports) of the EU and the ENP countries. The paper provides comparative empirical evidence concerning paths of trade integration between the EU and the ENP countries. It does so by undertaking a descriptive statistical and graphical analysis of the findings derived from the estimation of a series of trade indicators. The analysis utilizes trade data derived from the UN COMTRADE database. The analysis covers the period 2000-2010. This period has been selected so as to gauge the latest shifts operated in trade structures as a result of the recent economic and political reforms (evolutions) implemented (took place) in the EU economy (i.e. the euro currency, the eastwards enlargement, the on-going financial and economic crisis) and the ENP countries (i.e. the "color" revolutions, the Arab "spring"), besides the ENP in itself. Trade data refer to the national-sectoral (2-digit SITC classification) level. The sectors included in the analysis grossly belong to the primary and the secondary sector of production and may form groups of activities according to the intensity of the production factors used. Providing a clear picture regarding the geography of EU-ENP trade, the paper offers valuable insight to both (economic integration) theory and policy-making.

The abolition of the artificial impediments of cross-border interaction has produced a new EU regional socioeconomic map, releasing dynamics that have influenced significantly the EU socioeconomic space. Especially at the borderlands, a new mix of opportunities and threats has come forth, putting EU border regions in a state of flux. The paper compiles a cross-section empirical econometric model that accounts for growth performance in the 349 EU NUTS III border regions during the period 2000-2006. The findings of the paper suggest that there is a series of inherent and acquired factors (initial conditions) that determine the growth performance in the EU border regions. These factors are both ('traditional') quantitative and qualitative ("soft"), indicating the complexity of border issues. The findings of the econometric investigation have important implications for both theory and policy.

The fears of a sovereign debt crisis and the consequent lack of confidence, indicated by a widening of bond yield spreads and risk insurance of credit default swaps, have transformed a financial crisis to an economic crisis in Greece, affecting its productive bases and its income level. Up to the present time, there is no clear empirical evidence about the spatial impact of the economic crisis on Greek territory. Because of the austerity measures imposed in Greece from its lenders (i.e. the IMF and the EU counterparts), inevitably, the main focus of attention has been on national rather than regional level, although the crisis has obvious spatial aspects that should not be neglected: (a) the initial, pre-crisis, conditions (i.e. market size, accessibility, geomorphology, natural resources, productive structure) were, already, strongly differentiated among Greek regions; (b) the anti-crisis, austerity, measures taken may have significantly differentiated implications across space; (c) the implementation of spatial policies may be hindered in countries being in stressful fiscal situation. From this perspective, (further) research should be done; critical issues such as how different places are affected by the economic crisis and why, and which regions will continue to be affected, are still open. The paper presents the spatial impact of the ongoing (2009-…) economic crisis in Greece, assessing the resilience and development of the Greek regions. To this end, a Composite Indicator of Regional Resilience (CIRR) and a Composite Indicator of Regional Development (CIRD) are constructed. Both Indicators include statistical data referring to a series of economic, structural, demographic and social variables. The data are derived from Hellenic Statistical Authority (EL.STAT.) and cover the period 2008-2010. The CIRR is calculated, for the whole period under consideration, as the average of the standardized growth values. The CIRD is calculated, for each year included in the period under consideration, as the average of the standardized absolute values. The calculations are conducted at the NUTS III spatial level. Both Indicators are concise, yet comprehensive, policy tools, allowing for the study of the spatial footprint of economic crisis. The findings of the paper verify that the pro-cyclical pattern of regional development in Greece, detected in periods of expansion, still exists in the period of recession. : economic crisis, Greece, spatial impact, composite indicators