Analysis of Barriers to Economic Activity Shaping in Selected Branches of the Services Sector in the Light of the Business Climate Changes in Polish Regions

Abstract

The economic performance of business enterprises depends not only on the quality of its tangible and intangible resources but also on the influence of external factors which may either stimulate a company’s growth or hinder it. Those external factors which may substantially influence the general conditions of economic performance are classified as barriers to doing business. The aim of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the business barriers and the general business climate. The intensity of barriers in different Polish regions is analysed against the general business climate indices for the Polish economy in selected branches of the service sector in the Polish economy. The ranking of Polish regions in terms of the average intensity of barriers in the service sector (sections H, I and J) is substantially diversified. Only a few regions are characterised by high intensity of business barriers in all three sections. The relationships between the intensity of barriers and the general business climate at the regional level are weaker than at the country level and remain predominantly negative. The position of a region in the general population of regions in terms of business climate varies in time. The following statistical methods have been applied: descriptive statistics measures, correlation analysis, Ward method. The improvement of general business climate in the selected branches of economy in regions, in principle, decreases the intensity of barriers to doing business.