Furceri, D. and Zdzienicka, A., (2013), “The Euro Area Crisis: Need for a Supranational Fiscal Risk Sharing Mechanism?”, IMF Working Papers Series, WP/13/198, Σεπτέμβριος. The aim of this paper is to assess the effectiveness of risk sharing mechanisms in the euro area and whether a supranational fiscal risk sharing mechanism could insure countries against very severe downturns. Using an unbalanced panel of 15 euro area countries over the period 1979-2010, …Read More
Member States’ Competitiveness Performance and Implementation of EU Industrial Policy Report 2013
European Commission, (2013), “Member States’ Competitiveness Performance and Implementation of EU Industrial Policy report 2013”, European Commission, 25 Σεπτεμβρίου. Progress has been made by Member States to improve the competitiveness of their economies, but many challenges still remain. An updated Industrial performance scoreboard assesses Member States’ industrial performance in five key areas, namely innovation and sustainability; business environment, services and infrastructure; public administration; finance and investment; and skills. The areas …Read More
Do European fines deter price fixing?
Mariniello, M., (2013), “Do European fines deter price fixing?”, VoxEU, 22 Σεπτεμβρίου. Cartel fines imposed by the European Commission routinely reach hundreds of millions of euro, having increased since the new 2006 fining policy. This column argues that they are still below their optimal level and come too slowly. Fines were often lower than the additional cartel profits and imposed 10 to 20 years after making the law-breaking decision was …Read More
Blogs review: Battle of narratives over the European recovery
Cohen-Setton, J., (2013), “Blogs review: Battle of narratives over the European recovery”, Bruegel, 24 Σεπτεμβρίου. Many European leaders have started to claim credit for the recent improvement in economic conditions in the Eurozone. The boldest example was certainly the op-ed written last week by Wolfgang Schauble where Germany’s Federal Minister of Finance used the good news to claim vindication over the skeptics of the European approach to the EMU crisis. …Read More
Looking at Europe’s Jobs Challenge: ‘A Way Out Does Exist!’
De Molli, V., (2013), “Looking at Europe’s Jobs Challenge: ‘A Way Out Does Exist!’”, EconoMonitor, 24 Σεπτεμβρίου. We are in the midst of an extremely delicate and fragile historical nexus. The crisis is worse than ever and is hitting above all those companies that are less-prepared and the weaker strata of society. Young people find themselves in ever-greater difficulty (one out of three in Italy and one out of two …Read More
Reshaping Europe’s financial system
Sapir, A. and Wolf, G., (2013), “Reshaping Europe’s financial system”, Bruegel, 23 Σεπτεμβρίου. With the upcoming Asset Quality Review (AQR) by the European Central Bank, Europe has a chance to fundamentally reshape its financial system to make it both more stable and more efficient. This will require bold action not only to clean up bank balance sheets but also to set a genuine single market for financial services. Prior to …Read More
Messing up the next Greek debt relief could endanger the Eurozone
Wyplosz, C., (2013), “Messing up the next Greek debt relief could endanger the Eurozone”, VoxEU, 23 Σεπτεμβρίου. Greece is in dire straits; it will need more debt relief. This column argues that Greece is suffering because northern EZ countries kicked the can down the road by forcing crisis countries to borrow rather than restructure their debts early on. It is time for the ‘generous’ lenders to face the consequences of …Read More
Is there a path to political union?
Merler, S., (2013), “Is there a path to political union?”, Bruegel, 23 Σεπτεμβρίου. Over the last few months and ahead of much anticipated European elections in May 2014, there has been a growing debate about the scope for further integration and leaps towards a form of “political union”. Advocates point to the hard constraints that an incomplete political integration has imposed on the management and the resolution of the euro …Read More
Η ανατομία της ανεργίας
Γαλενιανός, Μ., (2013), “Η ανατομία της ανεργίας”, Protagon.gr, 23 Σεπτεμβρίου. Πέρα από την αύξηση της ανεργίας, είναι πολύ ανησυχητική η παραμονή 900.000 ανθρώπων (τα δύο τρίτα των ανέργων) εκτός εργασίας πάνω από έναν χρόνο. Καθώς η απουσία από την εργασία οδηγεί στην απώλεια δεξιοτήτων και επαφής με τον εργασιακό χώρο, η επανένταξη στην απασχόληση είναι πολύ δυσκολότερη για τους μακροχρόνια ανέργους. Αυτές οι αντιξοότητες δεν θα υποχωρήσουν εύκολα ακόμα και …Read More
Europe’s Japan?
Fubini, F., (2013), “Europe’s Japan?”, Project Syndicate, 20 Σεπτεμβρίου. Since the global economic crisis began in 2008, Italy’s GDP has declined by about 8%, nearly a million workers have lost their jobs, and real wages have come under increasing pressure. In southern Italy today, a young person – especially a woman – on a permanent work contract, being paid on time and in full, is a statistical oddity. And yet, …Read More