We use a 12-dimensional VAR to examine the dynamic effects on the labour market of four structural technology and policy shocks. For each shock, we examine the dynamic effects on the labour market, the importance of the shock for labour market volatility, and the comovement between labour market...

We estimate the multiplier relying on differences in spending in infrastructure across Italian provinces and an instrument identifying investment changes that are large and exogenous to local cyclical conditions. We derive our instrument from the Law mandating the interruption of public work on...

Despite the increasing integration of capital markets, geography has not yet become irrelevant to finance. Between 1986 and 1997, European public companies have increasingly listed abroad, especially in the US. We relate the cross-listing decisions to the characteristics of the destination...

The single most important policy-induced innovation in the international financial system since the collapse of the Bretton-Woods regime is the institution of the European Monetary Union. This paper provides an account of how the process of financial integration has promoted financial...

Italian blue chip stocks are now actively traded in two markets: the dealers' market of SEAQ International in London and the traditional auction market in Milan. Analysing their interaction, we find that: 1.The London market for Italian equities has grown rapidly relative to the Milan stock...

Many economists argue that the primary economic function of banks is to provide cheap credit, and to facilitate this function, they advocate the strict protection and enforcement of creditor rights. But banks can serve another important economic function: through project screening they can...

In the context of an overlapping generations model, we show that liquidity constraints on households: (i) raise the saving rate; (ii) strengthen the effect of growth on saving; and (iii) increase the growth rate if productivity growth is endogenous. These propositions are supported by...

Entrepreneurs may be constrained by the law to bequeath a minimal stake to non-controlling heirs. The size of this stake can reduce investment in family firms, by reducing the future income they can pledge to external financiers. Using a purpose-built indicator of the permissiveness of...

The Paper analyses the political decision that determines the degree of investor protection. We show that entrepreneurs and workers can strike a political agreement by which low investor protection is exchanged for high employment protection. This ‘corporatist’ agreement is feasible if the...

We investigate the distribution of trading volume across different venues after a company lists abroad. In most cases, after an initial blip, foreign trading declines rapidly to extremely low levels. However, there is considerable cross-sectional variation in the persistence and magnitude of...