European Commission (2014) “Government wages and labour market outcomes”, European Economy. Occasional Papers, Απρίλιος 2014: Βρυξέλλες. As most European countries are trying to consolidate public finances, whilst also attempting to improve cost competitiveness for external rebalancing and abate unemployment, it is crucial to assess government wage formation, its outcomes and interaction with private sector labour costs. This paper provides an overview of government wage setting regimes, an empirical analysis …Read More
What drives the German current account? And how does it affect other EU member states?
Kollmann, R., Ratto, M., Roeger, W., In’t Veld, J. & Vogel, L. (2014) “What drives the German current account? And how does it affect other EU member states?”, European Economy, Economic Papers, Απρίλιος 2014. We estimate a three-country model using 1995-2013 data for Germany, the Rest of the Euro Area (REA) and the Rest of the World (ROW) to analyze the determinants of Germany’s current account surplus after the …Read More
Losing Interest
Eichengreen, B. (2014) “Losing Interest“, Project Syndicate, 11Απριλίου. BERKELEY – Two of the world’s most prominent economic institutions, the International Monetary Fund and Former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, recently warned that the global economy may be facing an extended period of low interest rates. Why is that a bad thing, and what can be done about it? Adjusted for inflation, interest rates have been falling for three decades, …Read More
The increasing competiveness of the southern Eurozone
Auer, R. (2014) “The increasing competiveness of the southern Eurozone“, VoxEU Organisation, 11 Απριλίου. Some view the improvements in current accounts for Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain as short-lived – the result of a temporary compression of import demand that is likely to be reversed as the recession eases. This column argues the contrary, based on the fact that their improving trade balances reflect better export performance. This development …Read More
The proposed EU Financial Transactions Tax is both illogical and likely to be economically damaging
Grahl, J. & Lysandrou, P. (2014) “The proposed EU Financial Transactions Tax is both illogical and likely to be economically damaging“, LSE EUROPP, 09 Απριλίου. In 2011, the European Commission proposed a Financial Transactions Tax (FTT) to raise revenue from the financial sectors in EU countries following the financial crisis. To date, however, only 11 EU states have so far agreed to implement such a tax. John Grahl and …Read More
Βιβλιοθήκη » EE » Οικονομία » Άρθρα Γνώμης
Europe’s Bogus Banking Union
Legrain, P. (2014) “Europe’s Bogus Banking Union“, Project Syndicate, 08 Απριλίου. LONDON – After a 16-hour marathon negotiating session ending on March 20, politicians, technocrats, and journalists were all keen to declare the deal on the final piece of Europe’s banking union a success. But appearances are deceptive. While the “banking union” may soon exist on paper, in practice the eurozone banking system is likely to remain fragmented along …Read More
Βιβλιοθήκη » EE » Οικονομία » Άρθρα Γνώμης
Estimating the impact of changes in aggregate bank capital requirements during an upswing
Noss, J. & Toffano, P. (2014) “Estimating the impact of changes in aggregate bank capital requirements during an upswing“, VoxEU Organisations, 06 Απριλίου. The impact of tighter regulatory capital requirements during an economic upswing is a key question in macroprudential policy. This column discusses research suggesting that an increase of 15 basis points in aggregate capital ratios of banks operating in the UK is associated with a median reduction …Read More
The eye, the needle and the camel: Rich countries can benefit from EU membership
Campos, F. N., Coricelli, F. & Moretti, L. (2014) “The eye, the needle and the camel: Rich countries can benefit from EU membership“, VoxEU Organisation, 05 Aπριλίου. One concern with EU enlargement is that relatively poorer countries benefit more from becoming members. This column uses data from the 1973 and 1995 enlargements to show that richer countries also benefited a lot from joining the EU. Per capita incomes would …Read More
Alter The European Union: A Conference In Helsinki For Progressive Change
Weeks, J. (2014) “Alter The European Union: A Conference In Helsinki For Progressive Change“, Social Europe Journal, 04 Απριλίου. At the end of March a coalition of progressive parties and groups organized a meeting in Helsinki focusing on fostering change in the European Union (political program summarized here). For anyone seeking to transform the present EU of the 1% into an EU for the 99% (see my new book, …Read More
Βιβλιοθήκη » EE » Οικονομία » Άρθρα Γνώμης
The lack of monetary sovereignty is not the reason Eurozone countries struggled during the crisis
Mabbett, D. & Schelkle, W. (2014) “The lack of monetary sovereignty is not the reason Eurozone countries struggled during the crisis“, LSE EUROPP, 04 Απριλίου. One of the most widespread arguments about the Eurozone crisis is that countries such as Greece, Spain and Italy have been hamstrung by their lack of monetary sovereignty and the ability to devalue their own currency. Deborah Mabbett and Waltraud Schelkle assess this perspective …Read More