E&Y polled 3,459 managers in 36 countries, including 22 EU states. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were regarded as one entity – the Baltic States.
According to E&Y, 57% of company heads in the 36 countries included in the survey said corrupt practices happen widely in business.
In Romania, 61 of the 100 respondents said corruption is widely spread in the local business environment.
Slovenia is seen as the most corrupt EU country, as 96% of Slovenian managers consider corruption in business is a widespread phenomenon. It is followed by Greece and Slovakia (84%), the Czech Republic (73%), Portugal (72%), Hungary (70%), Spain (65%), Romania (61%), Italy (60%), Belgium (51%), the Baltic States (47%), Austria (46%), Ireland (43%), the UK (37%), Germany (30%), France (27%), The Netherlands (23%), Sweden and Finland (12%), Switzerland (10%).
Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Luxembourg and Malta were not included in the report.
According to the survey, 19% of Romanian respondents said corruption is present in their business sector.