Cluster analysis is used to explore the performance of key macroeconomic variables in European countries that share the euro, from the inception of the currency in 2002 through to 2013. An original applied statistical approach searches for a pattern synthesis across a matrix of macroeconomic...

Der Rückgang der deutschen Staatsverschuldung auf rd. 60 % des BIP in diesem Jahr ist ein Erfolg für die deutsche Haushaltspolitik. Eine Zerlegung der Entwicklung der Staatsverschuldung seit dem Jahr 2010 zeigt, dass der Schuldenabbau in Deutschland im Wesentlichen durch ein über weite...

The 2007/8 financial crisis has reignited the debate about austerity economics and revealed that it remains a highly contested, yet poorly understood idea. This article locates the debate in its historical context, tracing it from the early 18th and 19th century Classical debates, which focused...

In this paper we argue that in contrast to the conclusion of Artis and Zhang, there is not much evidence in support of the view that increased exchange rate stability is related to more synchronised business cycles in Europe. This finding may have important consequences, as existing differences...

Euroland is in a crisis that is slowly but surely spreading from one periphery country to another; it will eventually reach the center. The blame is mostly heaped upon supposedly profligate consumption by Mediterraneans. But that surely cannot apply to Ireland and Iceland. In both cases, these...

The creation of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) has not brought significant gains to the Portuguese economy in terms of real convergence with wealthier eurozone countries. We analyze the causes of the underperformance of the Portuguese economy in the last decade, discuss its growth...

This paper explores the dominant role of politics in decisions made by euro area governments during the crisis. Decisions that appear to have been driven by local political considerations to the detriment of the euro area as a whole are discussed. The domination of politics over economics has...

Why did Europe fail to manage the euro area crisis and what lessons can be drawn from this failure for Europe's future? Studying the EU/IMF program that was imposed on Greece in May 2010 — the original sin of the crisis — highlights both the nature of the problem and the difficulty in...

After the Brexit referendum the behavior of the UK economy defied widespread expectations, as it did not exhibit a V-shaped recession, but a slow decline in production. We show that this pattern of propagation arises when uncertainty is about future, rather than current fundamentals, and if the...

The creation of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) has not brought significant gains to the Portuguese economy in terms of real convergence with wealthier eurozone countries. We analyze the causes of the under-performance of the Portuguese economy in the last decade, discuss its growth...