Vorbach, Judith, (2017), “EU – Fateful Year 2017″, Social Europe, 29 Ιουνίου Economic policy has predominantly been run on neoliberal lines, notably since the 1970s. This trend has manifested itself in the liberalization of markets, cuts in public investment, de-regulation, privatization and marginalization of trade unions. The credo runs: The less government interferes in the market and the more it improves the framework conditions for companies (aka supply side), the …Read More

Horn, Gustav, (2017), “How To Get Rid Of Germany’s Excessive Current Account Surplus”, Social Europe, 26 June The demand is frequently made that wages in Germany should grow more strongly than up till now. The hope is that this would raise the price of exports and, thereby, foreign demand for German goods would drop. This alone would reduce the surplus in the current account. There would be an even stronger effect …Read More

Le Barbanchon, Thomas, Rathelot, Roland, Roulet, Alexandra, (2017), “Unemployment insurance and reservation wages”, Vox Eu, 27 June Pinpointing the right level of generosity of an unemployment insurance system is a delicate exercise. The main objective of the unemployment system is to provide insurance for workers who lose their jobs. The system should be generous enough to smooth income shocks and allow workers to look for a job when economic conditions …Read More

Davies, Howard, (2017), “Understanding The Productivity Puzzle”, Social Europe, 26 June According to the UK’s Office for National Statistics, output per hour in France was 14% lower in 2015 than it would have been had the previously normal trend growth rate been matched. Output was 9% lower in the United States and 8% lower in Germany, which has remained the top performer among developed economies, albeit only in relative terms. …Read More

Giugliano, Ferdinando, (2017), “Europe’s Banking Union Is Dying in Italy”, Bloomberg View, 23 June The Italian government looks set to put Veneto Banca and Banca Popolare di Vicenza, two troubled regional lenders, into liquidation, selling off the good assets to a rival bank for a symbolic price. The toxic assets would be transferred to a bad bank, mostly funded by the government. Shareholders and junior bond-holders would contribute to the …Read More