Industrial restructuring in the CR

The authors analyze the restructuring of Czech companies during 1990-1998. They examine several restructuring measures, including changes made in corporate structure and changes made in the headquarters structure. Significant differences are found between firms, as well as among industrial branches. Output has stabilized somewhat, but only compared to the extremely low base seen after the collapse of the centrally planned economy. There are, as yet, no signs of a sustained upturn in industry, where a substantial number of firms have yet to be privatized and considerable rationalization is still expected. Financial analysis reveals two important indicators of a company's performance: its economic sector and the involvement of domestic versus foreign investors.