Buttonwood: Let’s get fiscal, A new book from a prescient economist, The Economist, 19 Δεκεμβρίου 2014. What is the Japanese word for Schadenfreude? For much of the late 1990s and early 2000s, Western economists and politicians were happy to lecture the Japanese government about the mistakes it made in the aftermath of its asset bubble. But six years after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the investment bank whose demise …Read More
Minelli, Ε. (2014) “Understanding Piketty: Merit and rent in a growing economy“, VoxEU Organisation, 19 Δεκεμβρίου. Growth and inequality are back at the centre of the economic debate. This column presents a framework for interpreting Thomas Piketty’s data based on Paul Romer’s model of endogenous growth. Two balanced growth regimes are possible in this framework: one (‘merit’) with a low capital–output ratio, a high interest rate, and high growth; …Read More
Lynn Parramore: Interview with Joseph Stiglitz: “Economics Has to Come to Terms with Wealth and Income Inequality“, Institute for New Economic Thinking, 16 Δεκεμβρίου. Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz has been writing about America’s economically divided society since the 1960s. His recent book, The Price of Inequality, argues that this division is holding the country back, a topic he has also explored in research supported by the Institute. On December …Read More
Schweighofer, J. (2014) “It’s Now Or Never: More Social, Less Europe in 2015!“, Social Europe Journal, 17 Δεκεμβρίου. To put it bluntly: Europe, more precisely, the European Union, has not delivered for decades now. The Union safeguards the interests of the employers and the mandarins from Brussels and 27 other capitals. Basically, this kind of integration is not in the interest of workers, trade unions, consumers et cetera. In the current …Read More
“Συζήτηση με τον Larry Summers: Τι επιφυλάσσει το μέλλον για την οικονομία; (Βίντεο)“, Social Europe Journal, 17 Δεκεμβρίου. As 2014 draws to a close people wonder what the new year will have in store. If you are worried about the world economy have a look at this discussion with Larry Summers. The former US Secretary of the Treasury discussed the major economic trends and challenges with David Leonhardt, editor …Read More
Mitchell, B. (2014) “Solving tax avoidance will not cure the Eurozone of stagnation“, Bill Mitchell Blog, 15 Δεκεμβρίου. There was an article in the French-language edition of Huffington Post last last week (December 10, 2014) – Sans Europe fiscale, le projet européen est condamné (Without taxes, the European project is doomed) – written by the President of the French Socialist delegation in the European Parliament, Pervenche Berès. Her committee …Read More
Louri-Dendrinou, Ε. (2014) “How likely is a credit-less recovery in the euro area? The role of a capital markets union“, LSE EUROPP, Hellenic Observatory – European Institute, 10 Δεκεμβρίου. It is often discussed how bank-dependent for financing investment euro area firms are. It is estimated that 80% of their investment needs are financed from banks and only 20% from capital markets, while in the US the reverse is true. …Read More
Gros, D. (2014) “Europe’s Misguided Investment Mania“, Project Syndicate Opinion Page, 11 Δεκεμβρίου. The mantra in Brussels and throughout Europe nowadays is that investment holds the key to economic recovery. The lynchpin of the new European Commission’s economic strategy is its recently unveiled plan to increase investment by €315 billion ($390 billion) over the next three years. But the Commission’s proposal is misguided, both in terms of its emphasis …Read More
Interview with Thomas Piketty: “The myth of national sovereignty helps big corporations screw us over”, The European Magazine, 12 Δεκεμβρίου. French economist Thomas Piketty has put inequality back on the map and is being hailed as the Karl Marx of the 21st century. He talked to Max Tholl and Florian Guckelsberger about a globalization gone wrong, a Eurozone parliament and our obsession with economic growth. The European: Mr. …Read More
Maarten Peter Vink & Ngo Chun Luk (2014) “Mapping Statistics on Loss of Nationality in the EU: A New Online Database“, Centre for European Policy Studies, Justice and Home Affairs, Liberty and Security in Europe Paper No. 76, Δεκέμβριος. Statistics can provide a useful perspective when assessing the practical relevance of varying rules and practices on the involuntary loss of nationality across EU Member States. Yet while much progress …Read More
