2019 Q4 Free Zones World Economic Barometer

The results of the 2019Q4 round, conducted in November, suggest that economic conditions in free zones around the globe have improved compared with the previous three months. However, the positive signal is not yet very strong given that the assessment for more detailed economic dimensions are somewhat inconclusive. Overall, the share of free zones reporting good economic conditions increased from 34 percent in 2019Q3 to 46 percent. 49 percent of free zones evaluate their current situation as normal, while the share of free zones experiencing poor conditions decreased from 8 to 5 percent. This translates into an F-WEB Economic Conditions Index of 41, up from 26 in 2019Q3 and similar to the level seen in 2019Q2. Expectations for the next three months have also become more optimistic. While the indicator for future economic conditions was on a downward trend since summer 2018, it increased from 33 to 50 this quarter – its highest value since 2018Q3.