The fiscal governance of the EMU is in dire need of reform. Its current arrangements suff er from several shortcomings, most notably, the limitations they impose on national fiscal policies, steering them towards too restrictive or pro-cyclical stances; the absence of an unconditional lender of...

Angesichts der Finanzierungskrisen der Sozialsysteme in westlichen Industriestaaten wird der Frage, ob die Zuwanderung von AusländerInnen das soziale Sicherungssystem entlastet, belastet oder kosten-nutzenneutral ist, in Politik und Wissenschaft gleichermaßen große Bedeutung beigemessen....

The concept of financial balances implies that the general government balance can be improved only if the enterprise sector and the foreign sector simultaneously increase their financial deficits and the household sector cuts its surplus. This paper explores how these adjustments can be...

There are large differences between Steindl's ideas on growth policies and the Brussels/Paris consensus. Steindl called for innovation and education policies, the mainstream today rather favours deregulation and privatisation. Steindl stressed the positive demand-side effects of the public...

The stagnation of the economy in the Euro area since 2000 is closely connected to the dominance of purely long-run supply-side oriented policies in the Euro area. While exports and profits soared, domestic demand has been weak. The neglect of cyclical and demand factors appears to be the major...

Income distribution as it currently is and its long-term development are studied from a variety of data sources. In terms of workers, the study focuses on the wages and salaries of the dependently employed. It finds that the gap between low- and high-wage earners is broad and has further widened...

The concept of debit and credit balances implies that the state's financing deficit can be reduced only when the business sector and the foreign sector at the same time assume more debts or when private households reduce their surplus. This working paper investigates how economic policy can...

Das kollektivvertragliche Lohnverhandlungssystem, das für nahezu alle Beschäftigten gilt, stellt ein zentrales Steuerungselement der österreichischen Wirtschaftspolitik und der Sozialpartnerschaft dar. Es zielt auf die Erhöhung der Kaufkraft der Haushalte und den Erhalt der...