Hill, F. & Shapiro, J. (2014) “Toil and Trouble in the United Kingdom: Why Scotland Won’t Be Europe’s Last Region to Seek Independence“, Brookings Think Tank, 16 Σεπτεμβρίου. On September 18, the people of Scotland will decide whether they wish to remain in the United Kingdom. As the referendum approaches, public attention has focused mostly on the implications of the vote for the future of Scotland and the United …Read More
Wyplosz, C. (2014) “Is the ECB doing QE?“, VoxEU Organisation, 12 Σεπτεμβρίου. Last week, the ECB announced that it would begin purchasing securities backed by bank lending to households and firms. Whereas markets and the media have generally greeted this announcement with enthusiasm, this column identifies reasons for caution. Other central banks’ quantitative easing programmes have involved purchasing fixed amounts of securities according to a published schedule. In contrast, …Read More
Ritholz, B. (2014) “How Europe’s Stimulus Sausage Is Made: Ritholtz Chart“, Bloomberg View, 09 Σεπτεμβρίου. The European Central Bank announced its latest — and belated — program of quantitative easing last week. The ECB made fresh commitments to buy a series of asset-backed securities (ABS), various bonds and expanded its previously announced Long-Term Refinancing Operations (LTROs). The ECB’s brand of quantitative easing is an incredibly complex process. I could …Read More
Bershidsky, L. (2014) “Europe’s Center of Power Shifts East“, Bloomberg Views, 04 Σεπτεμβρίου. As Jean-Claude Juncker assumes its presidency, the European Commission — Europe’s de-facto government — will ostensibly be run by representatives of the bloc’s newest, post-Communist members, but there will no longer be a commissioner for EU expansion. Europe needs time to heal, consolidate and reorient itself politically and economically. The reorientation appears to be along unfashionably …Read More
Leach, G. (2014) “Forget the dodgy numbers: Leaving the EU makes economic sense“, City A.M. free daily business newspaper, 28 Μαΐου. UKIP’S recent electoral triumph has reignited debate about the cost of Britain’s place in the EU. But what do we know about the economics of our membership? Let’s start from the beginning: we’ll find that Brexit has long made economic sense. Prior to joining the then Common Market …Read More
Meyer, H. (2014) “Why European Progressives Stick To Austerity“, Social Europe Journal, 01 Σεπτεμβρίου. Writing about the recent French government crisis in the New York Times, Paul Krugman raised some uncomfortable questions. He worried about the ongoing dominance of austerity illogic on this side of the Atlantic and what this says about public discourse and the effectiveness of progressive forces. He criticised the UK Labour Party for its unwillingness …Read More
Pisani-Ferry, J. (2014) “Europe According to Draghi“, Project Syndicate, 31 Αυγούστου. Central bankers are often proud to be boring. Not Mario Draghi. Two years ago, in July 2012, Draghi, the president of the European Central Bank, took everyone by surprise by announcing that he would do “whatever it takes” to save the euro. The effect was dramatic. This August, he used the annual gathering of top central bankers in …Read More
Παγουλάτος, Γ. (2014) “Οι μισές αλήθειες της ευρωκρίσης“, Εφημερίδα Καθημερινή, 31 Αυγούστου. Η αντιμετώπιση της ευρωκρίσης στηρίχθηκε σε μισά μέτρα – γι’ αυτό η κρίση συνεχίζεται. Ο διάλογος στην Ευρωζώνη διεξάγεται με μισές αλήθειες – γι’ αυτό δυσχεραίνονται οι συναινέσεις για την υπέρβαση της κρίσης. Η μισή αλήθεια της κυβέρνησης Μέρκελ είναι ότι η ανάπτυξη, ιδίως στις χώρες του Νότου, θα έρθει με εθνικές μεταρρυθμίσεις. Πράγματι, χωρίς διαρθρωτικές …Read More
Sonntag, A. (2014) “A missed opportunity“, EU-Asia Institute at ESSCA School of Management, 01 Σεπτεμβρίου. 20 years ago, on the 1st of September 1994, two German MPs from the CDU led by Helmut Kohl published a position paper, which bore the innocuous title ‘Reflexions on European Politics’ and which became quickly named the ‘Schäuble-Lamers Paper’ after its authors. The propositions and recommendations formulated in this rather dense document of …Read More
Brenner, T. & Reinicke, W. (2014) “Fixing Europe’s Orbán Problem“, Social Europe Journal, 26 Αυγούστου. In April, when German Chancellor Angel Merkel congratulated Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on his reelection, she let it be known that his large majority implied a “special responsibility” to use good judgment and behave with sensitivity toward opponents. He has done exactly the opposite. Indeed, Orbán has consistently defied the European Union’s core values and …Read More
