This low labor and production costs have roots mainly in the character of labor market and features of unemployment, which is still, in spite of down-sloping trend, one of the highest in the region. However, availability of this workforce, which is relatively skilled, represents another advantage. Industrial restructuring and transformation have led to a high level of redundancy of skilled labor force.
Stateowned heavy industry and weaponry, running before 1990, were liquidated or went bankrupt. After the period of low foreign investments until 1999, job creation dropped into red numbers. This trend has been reverted after 2000; however still large numbers of industry oriented skilled workers mainly in central and eastern parts of the country are searching for job opportunities. 6.