More than six years have passed since the subprime mortgage crisis began in the US in the summer of 2007. In the following year, it spread to the entire world economy. Its consequences have not been fully overcome yet. Thus it’s not surprising that economists’ attention has been largely...

Since the beginning of 2010, the common currency area in Europe found itself under serious strain as a consequence of the sovereign debt crisis in several member states. While a substantial political and financial effort has been made to avoid a collapse of the Euro project, its ultimate outcome...

In this brief the authors analyze the key challenges facing the MED11 countries and propose policy measures that could improve the region’s economic and social performance.

The revolutionary events of January and February 2011 opened the door for democratic transition in Egypt, but the road to a stable and sustainable democracy will be long and full of challenges. However, the macroeconomic environment post-revolution has become increasingly worrying as a result of...

The public debt crisis is not limited to Greece or to the Euro area but includes several developed economies. Thus, suggesting that the Eurozone is undergoing a currency crisis or is in danger of disintegration is not the right diagnosis. However, if prudent fiscal policies, fiscal discipline...

The U.S. economy’s rapidly growing trade and current account deficits and systematic weakening of the dollar against the Euro and other currencies raised several concerns about its future as the global reserve currency. Skeptics of the U.S.’s enduring economic and political power...

The new European Union (EU) economic governance package released by the European Commission on September 29, 2010 includes two major components, i.e., changes and amendments to the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) and new regulation on the prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances...

The recent decision of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) to increase its assets by purchasing $600 billion worth of Treasury bonds is unlikely to boost economic growth or employment prospects in the U.S. Instead, it will cause major damage throughout the world economy, especially in emerging...

The negotiations on the Association Agreement (AA) between the European Union (EU) and Ukraine, including its trade component, i.e., the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA), were completed in December 2011. The agreement is practically ready to be signed, if the EU’s...

More than a year has passed since the beginning of the political uprising against the authoritarian regimes in the Arab world. But, as demonstrated by the recent dramatic developments in Syria, the process is far from over. Meanwhile nations which have already freed themselves from their...