Upper Austria Economy and History

Economy

In a comparison of the nine federal states, Upper Austria ranks fifth in terms of economic power with a gross domestic product (GDP) per resident of (2016) € 41,100. Upper Austria contributes 17.0% to Austria’s GDP and has developed from a traditional agricultural country into an important industrial area. This development was favored by the proximity to southern Germany, Austria’s largest export market. 33.1% of the workforce (Austria: 25.6%) work in the industrial sector (including mining, energy and construction), in the service sector 60.6% (Austria: 70.1%) and in agriculture. and forestry 6.2% (Austria: 4.3%). The share of the secondary sector in gross value added (GVA, at manufacturer prices) is (2016) with 39.1% significantly higher than the national average (27.7%), the share of the tertiary sector is 59.4% (Austria: 71.0%) and that of the primary sector to 1.6% (Austria: 1.2%). In 2016, the unemployment rate was 6.1%, below the national average of 9.1%.

Agriculture: More than 45% of the area of ​​Upper Austria is used for agriculture (including around 294,000 ha as arable land), almost 42% of the area is forest. Agricultural production is concentrated in the Eferdinger Basin and the Alpine foothills, the area of ​​the “grain” and “cider farmers”. The main crops grown are maize, wheat, barley and sugar beet; Fruit and vegetable cultivation are also important. Upper Austria is the most important federal state in cattle breeding (share of Austria’s cattle population: around 29%) and the dairy industry, as well as pig breeding (share of Austria’s pig population: almost 40%).

Natural resources and the energy industry: crude oil and natural gas are produced in the area around Kremsmünster. The formerly important mining of lignite in the Hausruck and Innviertel has declined sharply. In 1995 the Ampflwang mine was closed. In the Salzkammergut (especially in Bad Ischl and Hallstatt) salt is obtained. The gross inland energy consumption was between 313 and 345 Petrajoule (PJ) in 2005–15; the peak value was reached in 2010, the lowest value is from 2009. In 2015 it was 333 PJ. In 2015, 31.7% of gross energy consumption came from renewable energy sources (including 51% from biomass and 33% from hydropower), coal accounted for 26.5%, followed by oil with 23.3% and natural gas with 18.4%.

Industry: The most important sectors include the machine and metal goods industry, the vehicle industry, the chemical industry, as well as mines and steel; The food and luxury food industry is also significant. Upper Austria’s economic structure is characterized by a few large and a large number of small and medium-sized companies. With an export share of almost 60%, Upper Austrian industry has an above-average export orientation. The centers of industry are Linz (important locations for mechanical and plant engineering, the steel industry and the chemical industry), Steyr (vehicle construction) and Wels (food industry) as well as the Vöcklabruck area.

Tourism: According to militarynous, tourism is of particular economic importance in the Upper Austrian lake area of ​​the Salzkammergut as well as in some other mountain regions. In 2016, Upper Austria accounted for 5.2% of all foreign overnight stays in Austria, and 41.9% of the guests came from abroad.

Traffic

The transport network is dominated by the east-west connections from Vienna to Salzburg (Westautobahn, Westbahn, federal highways). The north-west-south-east connection from Passau via Wels and the Pyhrn Pass (tunnel) to Styria(motorway, railway) also gained importance as a European transit route. To the north, Linz is connected to Bohemia (České Budějovice) via Freistadt. Linz-Hörsching Airport is of international importance. The Danube as a transit route has gained in importance with the completion of the Rhine – Main – Danube large shipping route. Linz has the largest Austrian Danube port.

History

The area of ​​today’s Upper Austria south of the Danube belonged to the Roman province of Noricum ripense. In the 6th / 7th In the 19th century it was settled by Baiern, in the 8th century in the southeast and east by Slavs. Upper Austria, which later became a border region against the Magyars after 907, was taken over by various noble families (including Lambachers). In the middle of the 11th century, the Traungauer or Otakare, the later margraves of Styria, became sovereigns; In 1192 the area came to the Babenbergs.

Upper Austria (Austria superior, »Upper Austria«; Traungau) 1264 is documented as an independent area with its own name. The Counts of Schauenburg lost armed conflicts (1380–90) with the Habsburgs (Albertine line), their territory was incorporated into the country. The “Land ob der Enns” was first called the Principality in the 15th century, but was still considered part of the Archduchy of Austria (“under the Enns” = Lower Austria) for a long time. King Maximilian I. Acquired in 1506 (War of the Bavarian Succession) the rule Wildeneck with the land around Mondsee and Wolfgangsee from Bavaria; In 1765 the western border north of the Danube was determined in its current course, in 1779 the Innviertel came to Upper Austria (unofficial name since the 17th century). Conflicts between peasants and authorities (especially 1525, 1597 and 1626 as well as in the 17th / 18th centuries) shook the country; The Protestant nobility fought in vain against the Habsburgs, after 1620 they were expelled from the country and they were re-Catholicized. In the Habsburg monarchy, “Austria ob der Enns” (name up to the 19th century) formed a crown land from 1849–1918 (1816–61 including Salzburg; 1861 enactment of the state order and election of the first state parliament; recognized as an archduchy from 1861). Upper Austria became a federal state in 1919 (since then its official name); 1938–45 belonged to the German Reich (main part of the Reichsgau Upper Danube) and 1945–55 to the American (Upper Austria south of the Danube) or Soviet-occupied zone. – Since 1945 the ÖVP the governor; Thomas Stelzer (* 1967) took over the position on April 6, 2017.