By Boris Groendahl and Alan Crosby
VIENNA (Reuters) - Central Europe has evolved from a collection of Soviet Communist satellite states into the most dynamic part of the capitalist European Union in less than a generation.
While dwarfed by neighbor Russia and by China and India, its countries now combine the vibrant economic growth of an emerging market with the political stability and legal certainty that come with joining the EU.
But as growth accelerated since central European countries became EU members in 2004, it has driven up wages and prices; a credit boom may have fanned a housing bubble; the adoption of the euro currency is slipping; and current account deficits have ballooned, making doomsayers predict an inevitable collapse.
Problems in the U.S. housing and mortgage sector have also led to signs of a bubble in emerging markets, into which investors have stampeded in recent weeks, driving stock markets to record levels.
More than a dozen top executives and policy makers will discuss how to succeed in a region sometimes overlooked by investors focused on bigger emerging markets at the first Reuters Central European Investment Summit in Vienna, from October 15-17, in a series of exclusive interviews.
"We still see a lot of opportunities in central Europe," said Andras Szalkai, a Stockholm-based portfolio manager at East Capital's Eastern Europe fund.
"Yes, growth opportunities may not be as big as in some other emerging markets but at the same time the risk-adjusted growth is still maybe the best and definitely worth looking at."
IMBALANCES UNWINDING? Continued...
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