Economic effects of uncertainty
Abstract: This Roundup discusses the literature on the effects of uncertainty on economic activity. Uncertainty will be generally referred to as the agents’ inability to form clear expectations about...
View ArticleCorporate taxation, leverage, and macroeconomic stability
Abstract: A key challenge for economic policy today is to make the financial system more resilient. The literature finds that high indebtedness (or: leverage), both in the financial and in the real...
View ArticleThe Dilemma or Trilemma Debate: Empirical Evidence
Abstract: One of the central results in international economics is that an economy cannot have at the same time independent monetary policy, free capital flows, and a fixed exchange rate. Over the last...
View ArticleDemand response in Germany: Technical potential, benefits and regulatory...
Abstract: An increased flexibility of the electricity demand side through demand response (DR) is an opportunity to support the integration of renewable energies. By optimising the use of the...
View ArticleNuclear power and the uranium market: are reserves and resources sufficient?
Abstract: The increase of the use of atomic power in some emerging economies, in particular South Korea and China, has revitalized a discussion regarding the availability of uranium resources. Despite...
View ArticleWhat causes the delay in reforms in Europe?
Abstract: The academic literature provides no clear answer to this question. In principle, the recent slowdown in reform activity and fiscal consolidation in the euro area may derive from several...
View ArticleCGE-Based Methods to Measure the Impact of Trade Liberalization on Poverty
Abstract: It is heavily discussed whether trade liberalization is good or bad for the poor in a given (developing) country. The answer depends on a wide variety of factors, such as the type of trade...
View ArticleParental leave policies and child development: A review of empirical findings
Abstract: Parental leave policies are a major policy tool used across OECD countries to support families before and after child birth. There are large differences across countries in the amount and the...
View ArticleTax evasion and the impact of international regulation: a summary of...
Abstract: While combating tax evasion ranks highly on the international policy agenda and journalists are covering leak after leak, the economics profession at large has somewhat neglected the subject...
View ArticleThe Inflation Targeting Debate
Abstract: Inflation targeting has become one of the most prominent monetary regimes around the globe. Proponents argue that it reduces the dynamic inconsistency problem of monetary policy and thereby...
View ArticleThe Natural Rate of Interest I: Theory
Abstract: The term natural (or neutral) real interest rate refers to the equilibrium value of the real interest rate. As this equilibrium is usually conceived as a situation where inflationary or...
View ArticleThe Natural Rate of Interest II: Empirical Overview
Abstract: The concept of the natural rate of interest (NRI) dates back to Wicksell (1898) and has since then been highly debated in the economic literature. In practice, estimates of the NRI can be...
View ArticleThe Natural Rate of Interest and Secular Stagnation
Abstract: In many advanced economies, there has been a declining trend in interest rates over the past thirty years. Since the financial crisis, interest rates have remained particularly low. Though a...
View ArticleWind power: mitigated and imposed external costs and other indirect economic...
Abstract: Since the 1990s, (onshore) wind power has become an important technology for electricity generation throughout the world. The economic rationale is the mitigation of negative externalities of...
View ArticleDoes more education protect against mental health problems?
Abstract: Mental health conditions are a leading cause of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and health costs worldwide: They account for 199 million DALYs or 37 percent of healthy life years lost...
View ArticleMicroenterprises in Developing Countries: Is there Growth Potential?
Abstract: Microenterprises account for a large fraction of employment in developing countries and they are likely to increase in importance in the future. In Sub-Saharan Africa, for example, around 8...
View ArticleThe use of financial market variables in forecasting
Abstract: Financial market indicators can provide valuable information for forecasting macroeconomic developments. In response to the global financial crisis of 2007/2008, the role of financial...
View ArticleCapital market integration and macroeconomic stability
Abstract: After the establishment of the Banking Union, the European Commission is working on measures to foster capital market deepening in Europe. Key goals for a European Capital Markets Union are...
View ArticleInternational Investments and Current Account Imbalances: The Importance of...
Abstract: Global capital flows have strongly increased from the 1980s until the outbreak of the financial crisis. As a result of this development, Germany's foreign investment has risen to around 250...
View ArticleMonetary Policy Normalization in the Euro Area
Abstract: The ECB announced in October 2018 that it would begin to cut back the amount of monthly asset purchases starting January 2018 while extending the duration of the purchases until at least...
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