Diez de los Rios, Antonio, Shamloo, Maral, (2017), “Quantitative Easing and Long-Term Yields in Small Open Economies”, IMF Working Paper No. 17/212, 29 September We compare the effectiveness of Federal Reserve’s asset purchase programs in lowering longterm yields with that of similar programs implemented by the Bank of England, the Swedish Riksbank, and the Swiss National Bank’s reserve expansion program. We decompose government bond yields into (i) an expectations component, …Read More

Wolff, Guntram B., (2017), “A Jamaican Germany is good for Europe”, 29 September After a surprising election result, Europe is closely watching German coalition negotiations. A so-called Jamaica coalition of conservatives, liberals and greens is the most likely outcome, but many fear this will be bad for the EU and the Eurozone. Not so, argues Guntram Wolff. In fact, a shift to Jamaica could be good news for Europe. Relevant …Read More

Center for Social and Economic Research (CASE), (2017), “Study and Reports on the VAT Gap in the EU-28 Member States: 2017 Final Report”, Institute for Advanced Studies, 18 September This analysis serves as the Final Report for the DG TAXUD Project 2015/CC/131, “Study and Reports on the VAT Gap in the EU-28 Member States”, which is a follow up to the reports published in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. We …Read More

Zettelmeyer, Jeromin, (2017), “Yes, the German election has created a problem for euro area reform.”, Peterson Institute for International Economics, 27 September Αngela Merkel will carry on as German chancellor, but has emerged weakened from the September 24 German parliamentary election. Has this outcome undermined the prospect for deepening Europe’s economic and monetary union (EMU)? Compromises on euro area reform have clearly become more difficult, and the political opportunity created …Read More

Veron, Nicolas, Zettelmeyer, Jeromin, (2017), “A European perspective on overindebtedness”, Bruegel, 28 September The sequence of crisis and policy responses after mid-2007 was a gradual recognition of the unsustainability of the euro-area policy framework. The bank-sovereign vicious circle was first observed in 2009 and became widely acknowledged in the course of 2011 and early 2012. The most impactful initiative has been the initiation of a banking union in mid-2012, but …Read More

Karamouzis, Nikolas, Monokroussos, Platon, Anastasatos, Tasos, (2017), “From a vicious to a virtuous cycle? Turning Greece into an attractive investment destination: Opportunities and Challenges”, Eurobank Research, Economy and Markets, Volume XI, Issue 3, September Since the signing of the first bailout agreement with official creditors in May 2010, Greece has made remarkable progress in eliminating its earlier fiscal and current account deficits, restoring international price competitiveness and implementing significant reforms …Read More

Macchiarelli, Corrado, Monti, Mara, Vedolin, Andrea, (2017), “Assessing the impact of the ECB’s Corporate Sector Purchase Programme on SMEs”, LSE EUROPP, 27 September The European Central Bank’s Governing Council is due to hold a policy meeting on 26 October, with many observers anticipating there could be a change to the ECB’s monetary stimulus programme. Corrado Macchiarelli, Mara Monti and Andrea Vedolin examine some of the measures that should be considered as the ECB looks to …Read More

Campos, Nauro, Fidrmuc, Jarko, Korhoen, Iikka, (2017), “Glass half full or half empty: Reviewing the dispute about the effects of the euro on the synchronisation of business cycles”, VoxEU, 26 September The debate about the future of the Economic and Monetary Union entails a careful examination of the costs and benefits of the European single currency. This column takes stock of the empirical evidence on the euro’s effects on business …Read More

Haas, Cameron, Young-Taft, Tai, (2017), “Quantitative Easing and Asset Bubbles in a Stock-flow Consistent Framework”, Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, Working Paper No.897, September Ever since the Great Recession, central banks have supplemented their traditional policy tool of setting the short-term interest rate with massive buyouts of assets to extend lines of credit and jolt flagging demand. As with many new policies, there have been a range of reactions from economists, with some …Read More

OECD, (2017), “OECD sees synchronised momentum for global economy, but urges further policy action to ensure sustainable and inclusive medium-term growth”, 20 September he world economy has picked up momentum, as expanding investment, employment and trade support synchronised growth across most countries, according to the OECD’s latest Interim Economic Outlook. The pace of expansion is projected to be faster this year than in 2016, with a further uptick expected in 2018, …Read More