Nicht zuletzt das Buch von Thomas Piketty hat die öffentliche und auch die wissenschaftliche Debatte über Verteilungsfragen wieder in Schwung gebracht. Unstrittig ist, dass die Ungleichheit der Löhne und der Haushaltseinkommen in Deutschland zugenommen hat. Die deutlichen Veränderungen der...

The current state of affairs in the euro area (EA) instills hope in economic recovery but also substantial concern. The crisis countries have made considerable, albeit quite uneven, progress in central areas of reform. Yet severe obstacles remain. Moreover, European policy makers have reformed...

In der aktuellen Debatte über die Target2-Salden im Eurosystem wurde zu deren Abbau das Ausgleichsverfahren der Federal Reserve in den USA vorgeschlagen. Der dortige Ausgleichsmechanismus ist jedoch rein bilanzieller Natur und führt lediglich zu einer Neuaufteilung der Aktivseite des...

In this paper, we assess the impact of major German structural reforms from 1999 to 2008 on key macroeconomic variables. By many, these reforms, especially the Hartz reforms on the labor market, are considered to be the root of observed imbalances in the Euro Area. Our simulations within a...

The euro area is experiencing a severe and highly complex crisis. It comprises three problem areas, the difficulties of some highly indebted European sovereigns to ascertain funding at palatable cost, the disconcerting fragility of the European banking system and disappointing growth prospects...

In this paper, we assess the impact of major German structural reforms from 1999 to 2008 on key macroeconomic variables. By many, these reforms, especially the Hartz reforms on the labor market, are considered to be the root of observed imbalances in the Euro Area. Our simulations within a...

In this paper, we use detailed data on the sovereign debt holdings of all German banks to analyse the determinants of sovereign debt exposures and the implications of sovereign exposures for bank risk. Our main findings are as follows. First, sovereign bond holdings are heterogeneous across...