This working paper is intended to shed light on a pressing issue: the apparent growth-dependency of European welfare states at a time of weak growth prospects and strong criticisms of growth. Indeed, while the notion of going beyond GDP growth is gaining momentum in the European Union, as...

Basu (2006) argues that the prevalence of 99 cent prices in shops can be explained with rational consumers who disregard the rightmost digits of the price. This bounded rational behaviour leads to a Bertrand equi- librium with positive markups. We use data from an Austrian price com- parison...

Strong policy responses have helped to mitigate the impact of the recent shocks. Output recovered rapidly from the pandemic and, in response to the energy price shock, the authorities made use of available fiscal room to mitigate its impact while preserving price signals to encourage lower gas...