BRUSSELS -- Electronics manufacturing services in Europe is forecast to grow 6.4% this year, with the largest jump coming in the eastern nations.

Western Europe, a region that includes France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Spain, the UK and other industrialized nations, is expected to grow 2.7%. Eastern Europe, however, which includes Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Romania, Russia and Slovokia, among others, is forecast to grow 9.2%.

Western Europe has seen several major EMS companies reduce their footprints in the past year, most notably Elcoteq and Kitron. Flextronics (Denmark) and PKC (Finland) are also among the EMS companies that have cut staff and plants in the region during the period.

The West's losses are the East's gains, however. Hungary, for example, which at 17% holds the largest EMS share of the Eastern Europe nations, has seen electronics manufacturing employment rise to nearly 30,000 workers. Jabil, which already employs more than 10,000 workers in Hungary, opened an additional facility in Polgar earlier this year, and Flextronics plans to expand its Budapest services center. Incap is expanding in Estonia, and Enics and others are seeing local gains as well.