The convergence dream 25 years on – half of the former communist countries did not converge to advanced EU countries from 1989-2014

7 January, 2015

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Darvas, Ζ. (2015) “The convergence dream 25 years on – half of the former communist countries did not converge to advanced EU countries from 1989-2014“, Bruegel Institute, 06 January. The 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall was widely celebrated – rightly so. The fall of communism opened the way for democracy, personal freedoms, security, lawfulness, fairness and economic efficiency, among others. The transition also raised hopes that …Read More

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The Crisis and the renminbi’s international role

7 January, 2015

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Cukierman, Α. (2015) “The Crisis and the renminbi’s international role“, VoxEU Organisation, 07 January. The Global Financial Crisis has increased the importance of the renminbi as an international currency. This column describes how the status of the remnibi has changed relative to that of the dollar and the euro. It also discusses what their future as future currencies would be. The author suggests that within 10 years, the renminbi …Read More

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A common sense guide to EU reform

31 December, 2014

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Corbett, R. (2014) “A common sense guide to EU reform“, Future Europe – Signposts from the European Elections, Europe’s World Journal, 09 October. It is hard to find a politician in any EU country these days who doesn’t call for ‘reform’. But as to what those reforms should be, opinions differ widely. And while the anti-system parties, wanting either to leave or destroy the Union are the loudest, it …Read More

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Closing the soft skills gap: Never too early to teach entrepreneurship

31 December, 2014

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Rosen, Α. (2014) “Closing the soft skills gap: Never too early to teach entrepreneurship“, Europe’s World Journal, 22 December. Here’s a wake-up call: Entrepreneurship is actually falling in the U.S. Shocked? Entrepreneurship and innovation, however, aren’t the same thing – it’s very possible to have innovation without starting your own venture. And the converse is also true; someone can start a new enterprise without a single innovation. But why …Read More

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Incomplete information and bargaining in the EU: An explanation of first-reading non-agreements

29 December, 2014

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Vibeke Wøien Hansen (2014) “Incomplete information and bargaining in the EU: An explanation of first-reading non-agreements“, European Union Politics Journal, December. According to the logic of standard veto bargaining models with complete information, bargaining in the European Union should never reach the second reading of the ordinary legislative procedure (co-decision). Even so, non-agreement at the first reading occurs frequently in European Union decision making. How can this be explained? …Read More

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Why so many commodity prices are down in the US, yet up in Europe

24 December, 2014

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Frankel, J. (2014) “Why so many commodity prices are down in the US, yet up in Europe“, VoxEU Organisation, 24 Δεκεμβρίου. Commodity prices have been falling in the US. This column argues that monetary policy has played a determining role in the falling prices trend. Monetary tightening is highly anticipated in the US, which is likely to raise short-term interest rates. At the same time, the ECB and Bank …Read More

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Christmas economics: Challenging some common beliefs

24 December, 2014

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Birg, L. & Goeddeke, A. (2014) “Christmas economics: Challenging some common beliefs“, VoxEU Organisation, 24 December. Christmas may be not so merry as we hope. Economists have argued that gift giving is an inefficient way to allocate resources, and it is widely suggested that Christmas brings a peak in prices and the number of suicides, or even disrupts the business cycle. This column discusses some conventional wisdom about Christmas …Read More

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Lacklustre investment in the Eurozone: The policy response

23 December, 2014

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Buti, M. (2014) “Lacklustre investment in the Eurozone: The policy response“, VoxEU Organisation, 22 December. Weak investment is a key macroeconomic problem in the Eurozone, and the new European Commission has proposed an ‘Investment Plan’ to complement existing policy initiatives. In this column, the Commission’s Chief Economist explains the key rationale behind the Investment Plan. Weak investment has been the main source of weakness in the Eurozone recovery (European …Read More

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The sham of central bank independence

23 December, 2014

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Mitchell, B. (2014) “The sham of central bank independence“, Bill Mitchell Blog: Modern Monetary Theory – Macroeconomic Reality, 23 December. Let it be noted that the Japanese government 10-year bond yield hit 0.33 per cent overnight. That tells you that all the scaremongering that has been going on over the last twenty years about hyperinflation, the Japanese government running out of money, the bond markets dumping the yen, and …Read More

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How Japan Bankrupted Itself – Lessons For Europe, The story of Japan’s decline — and the lessons for Europe

23 December, 2014

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Stelter, D. (2014) “How Japan Bankrupted Itself – Lessons For Europe, The story of Japan’s decline — and the lessons for Europe“, The Globalist, 19 December. Following the start of Abenomics in 2012, Japan moved back to the center of attention of global financial markets. After two and a half decades of economic stagnation, hopes were high that Japan would escape its long stagnation and deflation. Plenty of economists …Read More

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