Saraceno, Francesco, (2015), “The End Of German Hegemony – Really?”, Social Europe, 3 November. I was puzzled by Daniel Gros’ recent column in which he claims that Germany’s dominance of the EMU may be coming to an end. Gros’ argument is based on two facts. The first is the slowing growth rate of Germany, that seems to be heading towards the pre-crisis “normal” of slow growth (Germany grew less than the EMU …Read More
Freire, André, Lisi, Marco, Andreadis, Ioannis, Leite Viegas, José Manuel, (2015), “Political Representation in Times of Bailout-Evidence from Greece and Portugal”, Routledge Publications, September Since 2008 many European states have experienced significant challenges in adapting to austerity, and political actors within these states have made significant changes in their discourses and practices. This book explores the short-term impact of the sovereign debt crisis on aspects of political representation in Greece and Portugal, …Read More
Sandbu, Martin, (2015), “Europe’s Orphan: The Future of the Euro and the Politics of Debt”, Princeton University Press, October Originally conceived as part of a unifying vision for Europe, the euro is now viewed as a millstone around the neck of a continent crippled by vast debts, sluggish economies, and growing populist dissent. In Europe’s Orphan, leading economic commentator Martin Sandbu presents a compelling defense of the euro. He argues …Read More
Kizys, Renatas, Paltalidis, Nikos, Vergos, Konstantinos, (2015), “The quest for banking stability in the euro area: The role of government interventions”, Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, 25 September. We build upon a Markov-Switching Bayesian Vector Autoregression (MSBVAR) model to study how the credit default swaps market in the euro area becomes an important chain in the propagation of shocks through the entire financial system. The study sheds light on the regime-dependent interconnectedness between …Read More
Constâncio, Vítor, Hartmann, Philipp, Tristani, Oreste, (2015), “Selected Takeaways from the ECB’s Sintra Forum on “Inflation and Unemployment in Europe” “, Voxeu, 28 October. Today the European Central Bank publishes the proceedings of its 2015 Sintra Forum on Central Banking (ECB 2015). In this column the organisers highlight some of the main points from the discussions, including the candid debate between Forum participants that favour a faster pace of structural reforms and the …Read More
Konstandaras, Nikos, (2015), “Greece’s Long Road From ‘No’ to ‘Yes’”, The New York Times, 26 October Greeks will commemorate the Oct. 28 national holiday in a very different country from what it was a year ago. The anniversary marks the day in 1940 when a Greek government rejected an ultimatum from Fascist Italy to allow its troops to enter the country. The “No” (“Ochi” in Greek) united a deeply divided country …Read More
Mason, Paul, (2015), “PostCapitalism: The Economy Of The Future?”, Social Europe Journal, 26 October Over the past two centuries or so, capitalism has undergone continual change – economic cycles that lurch from boom to bust – and has always emerged transformed and strengthened. Surveying this turbulent history, journalist and Channel 4 economics news editor Paul Mason wonders whether this time capitalism itself has reached its limits and is changing into …Read More
Bordignon, Massimo, (2015), “Renzi’s risky budget strategy “, Bruegel publications, 21 October The Italian government intends to postpone the fiscal adjustment decided last year in accordance with European authorities, and to increase instead the budget deficit in 2016 by about 0,8 GDP points, from an estimated 1,4% to 2,2% (or even to 2,4%, depending on whether the Commission will grant some extra budget flexibility to cope with the refugee crisis). …Read More
Bodea, Cristina, (2015), “Fixed exchange rates with escape clauses: The political determinants of the European Monetary System realignments”, European Journal of Political Economy, Volume 39, September This paper studies the political economy of realignments to fixed exchange rates and suggests that the use of realignments is less likely when there are political benefits from stable exchange rates and when linkages across other issue areas increase the costs of realignment. More …Read More
Kincaida, Russell, Watson, Max, (2015), “Avoiding Another Crisis in the Euro Area: Public and Private Imbalances and National Policy Responses”, Journal of European Integration, 1 September Early critics of the euro’s design pointed to the disruptive potential — both political and economic — of country-specific shocks in a monetary union that is a far cry from an optimal currency area. The euro crisis has confirmed the risks associated with a …Read More
