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EU Falls Short of U.S.

January 22, 2004

The European Commission has admitted that it the EU cannot catch up to the U.S. in terms of living standards and outlined "serious problems" in its goal to become the most dynamic and competitive economy by 2010.

https://p.dw.com/p/4asX

The European Commission on Wednesday published a very downbeat assessment of its highly ambitious goal to become "the most competitive, knowledge-based economy in the World by 2010." The report concedes, "the Union cannot catch up on the United States as our per capita GDP is 72 percent of our American partner’s." Commission President Romano Prodi confirmed that the EU would miss its targets and said, "This should be a strong enough message to serve as a wake-up call to governments." According to the report, the EU lags behind the U.S. in jobs, productivity and investment. The Commission blames member states for these failings, saying they have not implemented crucial reforms. Other observers outside the Commission blame Brussels for not setting better guidelines. (EUobserver.com)