Press Release: State aid movement in the right direction

The European Commission adopted, on 19 July 2001, its Ninth Survey on State Aid in the European Union (EU), which updates previous data with figures for 1997 to 1999. Although indicating that levels of State aid are still high, the continuing decreases show that progress is being made in the right direction. During 1997-1999 the overall level of aid has decreased to an annual average of €90 billion compared with €102 billion in the previous reporting period 1995-1997. The survey covers all sectors of the economy but analyses in particular the manufacturing sector, which absorbed around €28 billion a year alone.