Gechert, S., Hughes Hallett, A. & Rannenberg, A. (2015) “Fiscal multipliers in downturns and the effects of Eurozone consolidation“, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Policy Insight No. 79, 25 February.   The literature on fiscal multipliers has expanded greatly since the outbreak of the Global Crisis. This column introduces CEPR Policy Insight 79, which reports on a meta-regression analysis of fiscal multipliers collected from a broad set of empirical reduced form …Read More

Holter, H., Krueger, D. & Stepanchuk, S. (2015) “Tax progressivity and the government’s ability to collect additional tax revenue“, VoxEU Organisation, 20 February.   Since the Global Crisis, debt sustainability has received increasing attention. This column argues that the maximum sustainable debt level depends negatively on the progressivity of the tax system. The authors estimate that the US is still relatively far from the peak of its Laffer curve and …Read More

Vuillemey, G. (2015) “Do derivatives make the world safer?, VoxEU Organisation, 12 February.   The interest rate derivatives market has grown tenfold over the past 15 years. These contracts are mostly held by commercial banks, raising financial stability concerns. This column discusses how hedging using derivatives affects bank lending and the occurrence of bank defaults. The interest rate derivatives market is the largest market in the world, with an aggregate …Read More