The lands that today comprise Croatia were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the close of World War I. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Since 2000, Croatia's economic fortunes have begun to improve slowly, with moderate but steady GDP growth between 4% and 5% led by a rebound in tourism and credit-driven consumer spending. Croatia is ranked as the 18th most popular tourist destination in the world. Inflation over the same period has remained tame and the currency, the kuna, stable. Nevertheless, difficult problems still remain, including a stubbornly high unemployment rate, a growing trade deficit and uneven regional development. The state retains a large role in the economy, as privatization efforts often meet stiff public and political resistance. While macroeconomic stabilization has largely been achieved, structural reforms lag because of deep resistance on the part of the public and lack of strong support from politicians. The EU accession process should accelerate fiscal and structural reform.