We assess the time varying features of fiscal sustainability in the euro area via revisiting the empirical relationship between the primary budget surplus and the debt-to-GDP ratio. Focusing on a sample of 11 Euro-area countries between 1999Q1 and 2013Q4 and by means of time series analyses, we...

We use SURE estimation methods to assess the link between prices, bond yields and the fiscal behavior. A first equation determines the country-specific cost of government financing via the long-term government bond yield, as a function of budget balance positions. A second equation links the...

We assess the impact of fiscal adjustments (and technology) on the evolution of markups in a panel of 14 OECD countries. We allow for smooth changes in the technological parameters by generating measures of TFP compatible with markups and assess the interaction between the two variables. Our...

We study a panel of 17 economies in the first wave of globalization, between 1870 and 1914, regarding the fiscal consequences of deflation. By means of impulse response analyses and panel regressions, we find that a 1 percent fall in the price level leads to an increase in the debt ratio of...