The survey was carried out in the period from December 20, 2017 until January 31, 2018 on a sample of 140 members of management boards of domestic and international companies in Croatia and it encompasses following areas:

• Business results in 2017
• Business environment
• Impact of institutions on the business environment
• Comparison with the region
• Business expectations
• Impact of EU membership on doing business in Croatia.

The majority of participants (65%) assessed their business results in 2017 as better than in the previous year and an increase in the number of employees was stated by 64% of participants.

As the main limiting factors for their business (in the last five years), the participants pointed out regulatory framework, administrative procedures and taxation of labor. The worst deterioration of business conditions in the past five years are attributed to the enforcement of laws and regulations, the judiciary and the quality of legislation. The biggest improvements in the five-year period are seen in increased demand for goods and services, better financing conditions and better conditions for trade.

The majority of participants perceive the impact of government institutions on business conditions as negative or without effect. There is a similar perception with regard to the impact of local institutions.

For the upcoming three-year period, 79% of AmCham member companies plan to expand the scope of their business operations in Croatia, while only 3% plan to reduce it. As many as 71% of companies are planning to hire new employees in the next three years, 20% of them more than 20 new employees.

EU membership which has enabled easier access to financing and new markets is rated positively by all survey participants (78%), who however find that Croatia is lagging behind comparable countries of Central and Eastern Europe. It is necessary to invest additional efforts for Croatia to make full benefit of EU membership and to catch-up with comparable Central and Eastern European countries, as well as retain the leading position in relation to non-EU member countries in the region, as a desirable location for investment.

The Survey can be found on the link.