Robert Golob promised a tax increase before the previous elections. It is one of the few promises he has kept. The “Achilles’ heel of the Slovenian economy,” as Minister Mesec once put it, or export-oriented companies, which are one of the cornerstones of Slovenian prosperity, are on the decline.
The causes can also be found in the deterioration of the situation on the European markets and, above all, in the unwise policies adopted by the Golob government. As the newspaper Delo reports, the authorities are responding to the worsening business climate by making it even worse with their own measures.
Export companies should adapt to the worsening situation by cutting their operating costs, in order to adapt to price pressures and unpredictable orders. Instead, they face a worsening fiscal situation, energy prices that are too high, and unnecessary bureaucracy related to finding staff abroad.
This is the Golob rule in practice – a grip around the neck of the economy. According to the Bank of Slovenia, exports already fell by 2 percent last year, and the trend is continuing this year. In the first six months of this year, exports reached 21 billion euros, down a full three percent compared to last year. Therefore, these are dramatic negative changes which, if the trend continues, will only increase.
One of the biggest problems is the increase in payroll taxation. As Delo reports, Slovenian exporters are therefore finding it very difficult to adapt to price pressures, and some are even deciding to move production abroad.
Of course, the opposite could be true. A serious tax relief on wages, such as that planned and implemented by the Janez Janša government, would both relieve the burden on companies and improve the financial situation of the working population. In other words, we would live better, and exporters would not have to think about moving production to more tax-friendly environments.
The situation on the international markets could soon deteriorate even further. The trend of declining exports to Germany, an extremely important economic partner for Slovenia, continues, as do exports to Austria and Italy.
A further reduction in orders from Germany, Italy and Austria could plunge export-oriented Slovenia into severe economic difficulties, which the socialist government of Robert Golob would tackle as usual. It would try to compensate for the fall in tax revenues with even higher taxes, which would further reduce economic activity.
Ž. K.
