Quotas will end in 2005 and many EU manufacturers are moving their operations off-shore to reduce costs. The report highlights the threats posed by cheap imports into the EU, identifies areas for investment in delocalised production and assesses the implications for future trade in the region.

The report supplies comprehensive data on trade in outward processing, and analyses the merits of joint ventures versus other forms of delocalisation strategy. The report presents a clear and concise summary of EU legislation on outward processing, and profiles a selection of EU manufacturing companies in selected East European countries.