This paper challenges the institutional sclerosis view of the German crisis according to which rigid labour markets and generous welfare state institutions have driven Germany into its position as „Europe’s sick man“. In general, the view is not convincing, because the underlying...

This paper traces the euro zone’s inadequate macroeconomic performance in recent years back to the predominance of a restrictive macroeconomic policy mix based on a ‘new monetarist’ approach to economic policy. An approach based on a (post-)Keynesian analysis is presented as a growth and...

The paper fundamentally challenges the institutional sclerosis explanation of the present German economic stagnation. Instead, we present a macroeconomic explanation focusing on the combined effects of too restrictive monetary policies, too restrictive and sometimes pro- cyclical fiscal policies...

Based on a post-Keynesian model of the relationship between wages, prices and employment, this paper begins by studying the extent to which unit labour cost trends have been responsible for disinflation and deflationary tendencies in Germany and Europe. Thereafter, the reasons for the...

It is by now widely accepted that the structural characteristics of the countries to become the euro area did not adhere to the conditions of an optimum currency area (OCA) when the euro was introduced in 1999. However, the satisfaction of OCA criteria may not be required for a workable currency...

This paper traces the euro zone’s inadequate macroeconomic performance in recent years back to the predominance of a restrictive macroeconomic policy mix based on a ‘new monetarist’ approach to economic policy. An approach based on a (post-)Keynesian analysis is presented as a growth and...

Starting from Schumpeter’s important distinction between „real analysis“ and „monetary analysis“, in this paper it is shown that major elements of Marx’s economic theory fall in the camp of monetary analysis and the implications for Marx’s theory of capital accumulation are...

The paper questions the predominant view on unemployment and wages in the European Un-ion according to which high unemployment is primarily caused by labour market rigidities, i.e. social institutions and regulations which prevent “market-clearing” real wage levels and structures. It is...

In the present paper we explicitly introduce interest payments and debt into a Kaleckian distribution and growth model with an investment function very close to Kalecki’s original writings. The effects of interest rate variations on the short-run equilibrium values of capacity utilisation,...

The Broad Economic Policy Guidelines contain the answers of the European Commission and the governments of the EU-member countries to the European growth and employment problems. These guidelines have been the major EU-economic policy concept for around ten years now. They can be seen as a...