Download Free Competitiveness And External Imbalances Within The Euro Area Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Competitiveness And External Imbalances Within The Euro Area and write the review.

This book deals with the relationship between the competitiveness of countries in Europe and the analysis of macroeconomic imbalances. It focuses mainly on a European analysis, along with special studies of the German economy, which is rarely considered to be a cause for the current crisis. The book also compares Germany with Italy, providing a comparative perspective on structural reforms. The first part of this book analyses macroeconomic imbalances based on a new framework from the analysis of the flow of founds rather than balance of payments, and presents an alternative measure of unit labour cost comparisons to investigate the relationship between imbalances and competitiveness. The second part is dedicated to the analysis of the trade performance of Germany and Italy and the sustainability of the German model in the EMU. The third part describes the reform policies implemented by Germany and their effect on imbalances; this includes wage moderation, the labour market reforms and weak labour demand. The final part explores the regional inequalities within Germany and Italy, providing useful lessons regarding fiscal federalism and regional banking developments. In conclusion, a big part of the problems within the Euro Area are generated by the use of a wrong framework of analysis, where the EMU is considered as a fixed exchange rate regime and not a single country. This book provides an alternative view which holds at the core the relationship between sectors. It is stressed throughout the book that the German behaviour has contributed to the rise of imbalances between countries due to its growth model, not suitable for a big developed country in a currency union. This book also finds that stressing banking integration within countries helps to reduce regional inequalities, which has important implications for the management of Europe’s future banking union and macroeconomic imbalances.
The 32nd issue of the International Productivity Monitor is a special issue produced in collaboration with the OECD. All articles published in this issue were selected from papers presented at the First Annual Conference of the OECD Global Forum on Productivity held in Lisbon, Portugal, July ...
We examine economic convergence among euro area countries on multiple dimensions. While there was nominal convergence of inflation and interest rates, real convergence of per capita income levels has not occurred among the original euro area members since the advent of the common currency. Income convergence stagnated in the early years of the common currency and has reversed in the wake of the global economic crisis. New euro area members, in contrast, have seen real income convergence. Business cycles became more synchronized, but the amplitude of those cycles diverged. Financial cycles showed a similar pattern: sychronizing more over time, but with divergent amplitudes. Income convergence requires reforms boosting productivity growth in lagging countries, while cyclical and financial convergence can be enhanced by measures to improve national and euro area fiscal policies, together with steps to deepen the single market.
This open access book explores the most recent trends in the EU in terms of development, progress, and performance. Ten years after the 2008 economic crisis, and amidst a digital revolution that is intensifying the development race, the European Union, and especially Central and Eastern Europe, are ardently searching for their development priorities. Against this background, by relying on a cross-national perspective, the authors reflect upon the developmental challenges of the moment, such as sustainable development, reducing inequality, ensuring social cohesion, and driving the digital revolution. They particularly focus on the relation between the less-developed Eastern part of the EU and its more developed Western counterpart, and discuss the consequences of this development gap in detail. Lastly, the book presents a range of case studies from different areas of governance, such as economy and commerce, health services, education, migration and public opinion in order to investigate the trends most likely to impact the European Union's medium and long-term development.
The global economic and financial crisis that started in 2007 exposed serious flaws in the euro's original design. This report examines why Europe's economic and monetary union was so badly affected by the crisis, and assesses whether further changes need to be made to the structure of economic governance that underpins it. A Chatham House, Elcano and AREL Report
Launched in March 2010 by the European Commission, the Europe 2020 strategy aims to achieve "smart, sustainable, and inclusive" growth. The engines for this growth are - Knowledge and innovation - Greener and more efficient use of resources - Higher employment combined with social and territorial cohesion This CEPS report takes an in-depth look at this major initiative and finds that the strategy itself needs to be revised in several important respects. First, the authors believe, R&D spending per se is not the best indicator of innovativeness; a new measure, intangible capital, would be more appropriate. Second, while increasing the share of the workforce with a university degree is important for competitiveness and employment, it is the quality of that education that matters more than the quantity. The study also finds that employment targets would be better reached by a skills upgrade among women who have the least education. Concerning climate change, the authors conclude that unless the EU increases the level of its ambition and adds a carbon import tariff, reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions are likely to have a negligible impact on global climate change. Finally and more generally, the report argues that the 2020 strategy should acknowledge the importance of institutional efficiency at the national level.
This book deals with the relationship between the competitiveness of countries in Europe and the analysis of macroeconomic imbalances. It focuses mainly on a European analysis, along with special studies of the German economy, which is rarely considered to be a cause for the current crisis. The book also compares Germany with Italy, providing a comparative perspective on structural reforms. The first part of this book analyses macroeconomic imbalances based on a new framework from the analysis of the flow of founds rather than balance of payments, and presents an alternative measure of unit labour cost comparisons to investigate the relationship between imbalances and competitiveness. The second part is dedicated to the analysis of the trade performance of Germany and Italy and the sustainability of the German model in the EMU. The third part describes the reform policies implemented by Germany and their effect on imbalances; this includes wage moderation, the labour market reforms and weak labour demand. The final part explores the regional inequalities within Germany and Italy, providing useful lessons regarding fiscal federalism and regional banking developments. In conclusion, a big part of the problems within the Euro Area are generated by the use of a wrong framework of analysis, where the EMU is considered as a fixed exchange rate regime and not a single country. This book provides an alternative view which holds at the core the relationship between sectors. It is stressed throughout the book that the German behaviour has contributed to the rise of imbalances between countries due to its growth model, not suitable for a big developed country in a currency union. This book also finds that stressing banking integration within countries helps to reduce regional inequalities, which has important implications for the management of Europe’s future banking union and macroeconomic imbalances.
The paper examines the extent to which current account imbalances of euro area countries are related to intra-euro area factors and to external trade shocks. We argue that the traditional explanations for the rising imbalances are correct, but are incomplete. We uncover a large impact of declines in export competitiveness and asymmetric trade developments vis-à-vis the rest of the world –in particular vis-à-vis China, Central and Eastern Europe, and oil exporters- on the external balance of euro area debtor countries. While current account imbalances of euro area deficit countries vis-à-vis the rest of the world increased, they were financed mostly by intra-euro area capital inflows (in particular by the purchase of government and financial institutions’ securities, and cross-border interbank lending) which permitted external imbalances to grow over time.
This book offers a critical perspective from which to observe evolution of the Euro Area and the European Union in these times of growing economic and political conflict.