Investment Report 2022/2023: Resilience and renewal in Europe – Chapter 2

real gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) in the european Union exceeded pre-pandemic levels at the end of 2021 and kept increasing in the first half of 2022.1 By the end of the third quarter of 2022, the aggregate investment rate, defined as the ratio of investment to GDp, was about a percentage point above its historical average and slightly exceeded its pre-pandemic level. [...] Investment In europe Chapter 2 48 Part IInvestment environment in a time of crises Box A The EU-US gap in productive investment the gap in productive, or non-residential, investment rates between the european Union and the United States widened at the end of the recession following the global financial crisis. [...] the higher investment in machinery and equipment in the United States is accounted for by rising investment in the information and communication sector and the health and social work sector. [...] In Central and eastern europe, however, real government investment declined by about 3% during 2021, a drop that was widespread across the region, except for estonia and Slovenia.6 Sustained growth in government investment in the european Union bolstered the economy in the short term, and this impact is likely to last in the medium and long term, as discussed in Box D. [...] they are more attentive and sensitive to the needs of the private sector for skills and labour, and they have the knowledge and capacity to adapt to specific local features and to create the right infrastructure and environment for the private sector.