1 Factor Content in Polish Trade with the European Union

The paper studies factor content of Poland's trade with the EU since the beginning of economic transition that started in 1989. Fourteen factors of production are used, including seven categories of labor, capital, three categories of land, minerals, oil and coal. The empirical results show that Poland was a net exporter of some of the factors to UE only in the initial years of economic transition. These were skilled labor, labor of farmers and workers, capital, arable land, forest land and natural resources. Poland is found to be a net exporter of coal intensive products throughout the entire period. Correction for trade imbalance reveals that Poland is also a net exporter of unskilled labor. The final conclusion is that the opening of polish economy in 1989 might have revealed the real comparative advantages in trade between Poland and European Union