Sachs, Jeffrey, (2016), “The Global Economy’s Marshmallow Test”, Project Syndicate, 27 January The world economy is experiencing a turbulent start to 2016. Stock markets are plummeting; emerging economies are reeling in response to the sharp decline in commodities prices; refugee inflows are further destabilizing Europe; China’s growth has slowed markedly in response to a capital-flow reversal and an overvalued currency; and the US is in political paralysis. A few central …Read More

Steil, Benn, Smith, Emma, (2016), “Emerging Markets Fear Yellen, But Need To Keep Their Eye On Draghi”, Forbes, 22 January In anticipation of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s first rate hike in nearly a decade, $500 billion in capital outflows slammed emerging markets (EMs) last year–a slow-motion version of the 2013 “taper tantrum,” when the Fed signaled that the era of quantitative easing was coming to an end.  Relevant Posts Minenna, Marcello, (2016), “How …Read More

Wren Lewis, Simon, (2016), “German Exports And The Eurozone”, Social Europe Journal, 24 January I have argued that the low level of German wage increases before the financial crisis were a significant destabilising influence on the Eurozone, which also indirectly contributed to Germany taking a hard line on austerity. Relevant Posts Turner, A. (2014) “Germany’s Secret Credit Addiction“, Project Syndicate, 10 November. The Economist Explains: “Why the German economy is in a …Read More

Woong Kang, Dae, Ligthart, Nick, Mody, Ashoka, (2016), “The ECB and the Fed: A comparative narrative”, Voxeu, 19 January Although the Great Recession was viewed as a US problem, the Eurozone was affected by it from the start. This column compares the monetary policy responses to the Crisis by the Fed and the ECB. It argues that the US approach has been much more aggressive and proactive. The ECB failed to provide stimulus when needed, …Read More

Rachel, Łukasz,  D. Smith, Thomas, (2016), “Towards a global narrative on long-term real interest rates”, Voxeu, 15 January Many candidate explanations for the low level of real interest rates have been put forward. Less progress has been made on bringing together the different hypotheses into a unifying framework, on quantifying their relative importance and on predicting the future path for real interest rates. This column attempts to fill that gap, and suggests …Read More

Gros, Daniel, (2016), “The Threat That Will Save Europe”, Social Europe Journal, 11 January. For the European Union, 2015 was another year of fundamental challenges. Two key elements of European integration – the euro and border-free travel within the Schengen Area – were placed under severe strain. And neither is in the clear. Nonetheless, one development in 2015 offers reason to hope that EU leaders will move beyond “muddling through” to …Read More

Misik, Robert, (2016), “Caputalism: Will Capitalism Die? “,  Social Europe Journal, 12 January The fact that western capitalism is in a severe crisis is now so commonplace that it’s become almost a cliché. In 2008 the global financial system stood on the brink of collapse and the rescue measures undertaken by panic-stricken governments will burden their economies for years to come. Relevant Posts Hodgson, Geoffrey, (2015), “Conceptualizing Capitalism-Institutions, Evolution, Future”, …Read More

Bloombeg View, (2016), “Poland Needs an Independent Central Bank”, 11 Ιανουαρίου In the two months since it won an absolute majority in parliament, Poland’s Law and Justice Party has seemed more intent on achieving something close to absolute power. Σχετικές Αναρτήσεις Wyplosz, Charles, (2015), “Grexit: The staggering cost of central bank dependence”, Voxeu, 29 Ιουνίου Merler, S. (2014) “Shrinking times – ECB excess liquidity falls below €100 billion”, Bruegel Think Tank, 24 …Read More