This paper is about fiscal consolidation measures (i.e. tax hikes and government spending cuts motivated by a desire to reduce the fiscal deficit and public debt) in euro area (EA) countries. The focus is on analysing the growth effects of fiscal adjustments as well as their implications for...

During the sovereign debt crisis, all euro countries have deployed "austerity packages", believing that they could regain the path of growth implementing structural reforms and cutting government spending. Such policies should have led to an initial decline in GDP followed by recovery and a...