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Analysis of the proposal „A constructive approach to Euro Area reform“

February 16, 2018 by andrew36 Leave a Comment

A group of 14 prominent economists, seven each from France and from Germany, has issued a detailed and rather comprehensive proposal for reform of the Euro Area (CEPR 2018).* This is a welcome initiative. There is a window of opportunity for reform in the Euro Area. Economically it has been created by the strengthening and increasingly broad economic upturn: policymakers can leave firefighting mode and focus on structural governance reforms. Politically it has been opened up by the 2015 report by the five presidents of the EU institutions, the initiatives by the new French President Macron, the proposals by the European Commission of December 2017, and, most recently, the declarations of intent on Europe emerging from the grand-coalition talks in Germany.

Together Germany and France account for half of Euro Area GDP. The authors of the report are all well-known in policy-oriented circles, while coming from different traditions. For all these reasons the report is set to be very influential. This appraisal follows the structure of the report itself, examining the underlying philosophy and problem analysis (1), the proposals relating to the financial sector (2), to fiscal governance (3) and finally institutional questions (4). An overall assessment with recommendations for extensions and alternatives concludes (5). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: CEPR, ECB, economic governance, Emmanuel Macron, EMU, EU Commission, Euro Area, Euroreport, fiscal capacity, fiscal rules, France, Germany, Macroeconomic Dialogue, Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure, Wirtschaftsdienst

Speech Pulse of Europe: On some recent developments in the Euro Area

June 6, 2017 by andrew36 Leave a Comment

The following text in German is a slightly revised version of a speech at the Pulse of Europe event in Dusseldorf, 4 June 2017

Der folgende Text ist die leicht überarbeitete Version einer Rede bei der Pulse of Europe-Veranstaltung in Düsseldorf, 4. Juni 2017

 

Mit dem neuen monatlichen Pulse of Europe-Veranstaltungsrhythmus haben wir die Chance, mehr Gedanken über Inhaltliches zu machen, darüber wohin sich Europa treibt. Wir wollen auf unseren Kundgebungen über neuste Entwicklungen berichten, und Debatten initiieren.

Heute möchte ich einige Neuerungen des letzten Monats aufgreifen, die gemeinsam haben, dass sie alle mit der gemeinsamen Währung, dem Euro zu tun haben.

Griechenland

Anfang Mai wurde ein neues Maßnahmenpaket in Griechenland beschlossen. Das ist aber leider keine gute Nachricht. Denn es sind weitere erhebliche Kürzungen der Renten beschlossen worden. Und der Grundfreibetrag wird stark gesenkt. Das sind Maßnahmen, die die Masseneinkommen und die Nachfrage weiter schrumpfen lassen und damit die Fortsetzung – sieben Jahre nach Ausbruch der Krise im Lande – einer gescheiterten Austeritätspolitik.

Im Gegenzug konnte sich die Eurogruppe aber nicht auf ein Paket von Schuldendienst-Erleichterungen oder anderen Unterstützungsmaßnahmen für Griechenland einigen, nicht zuletzt wegen des andauernden Streits zwischen der EU und dem Internationalen Währungsfonds. Dieser Zwist zwischen den Kreditgebern muss umgehend beendet werden – am saubersten dadurch, dass die EU die Verbindlichkeiten Griechenlands an den IWF übernimmt. Am 15 Juni tagt die Eurogruppe erneut. Wir sollten eine klare Botschaft an die Finanzminister, auch den deutschen schicken: Es kann nicht sein, dass Griechenland weiter am langen Arm verhungert.

Das bringt mich zu … [Read more…]

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: current account, deepening, Emmanuel Macron, EMU, EU Commission, Euro Area, France, Germany, Greece, Pulse of Europe, reflection papier

Germany’s debt brake is not a model for Europe

September 6, 2016 by andrew36 Leave a Comment

My IMK colleagues Christoph Paetz, Katja Rietzler and Achim Truger have just issued an important analysis of experience with the German Schuldenbremse (debt brake) since 2011. If you read German I heartily recommend you to consult it. We will prepare an English translation, but given the importance of the debt brake for the fiscal policy discussion in Europe (and the fact that quality technical translations take time) let me summarise the main points of interest for European readers here.

The first key mesage is that the apparent successes of the debt brake – the over-fulfilment of fiscal targets, rapid consolidation and emulation by other EU governments under the fiscal compact – are in fact a mirage. The consolidation outcomes, in particular the fact that Germany has posted fiscal surpluses for the past two years, result from the favourable economic and labour market development in Germany, especially the unexpectedly rapid bounce-back from the Great Recession. On top of this came substantial savings in interest payments due to the fall in interest rates, as much of the remaining euro area was mired in recession and the ECB pulled out the monetary stops.

The second, more fundamental point is that the favourable business cycle since the introduction of the debt brake has so far concealed its most insidious danger. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: cyclically adjusted, debt brake, Fiscal Compact, fiscal policy, GDP, Germany, IMK, multiplier, output gap, Schuldenbremse, structural balance

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  1. Mainly macro (Simon Wren-Lewis)
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  3. econoblog101 (Dirk Ehnts)