This paper reviews the accumulated theory and evidence on the sources of European underperformance in terms of economic growth and unemployment. It takes the view that the main problem lies with labor market institutions, ranging from negotiation structures to hiring and firing costs,...

In this paper we consider a range of topics which connect exchange rates to the economic growth process. In particular, we first of all outline the basic properties of exchange rates when they are flexible. One key feature of flexible exchange rates is that they are highly volatile and such...

This paper discusses possible links between monetary arrangements in particular monetary union and economic growth. It is stressed that growth depends ultimately on how the real economy works: there is no monetary magic that can conjure up growth. But monetary policy can contribute to conditions...

The international press has recently reported on the widely-held view in the financial markets that the movement of the Belgian industrial confidence indicator might precede the euro area business cycles. The initial purpose of this paper is to assess whether this market perception is more than...

This paper develops and estimates a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model with sticky prices and wages for the euro area. The model incorporates various other features such as habit formation, costs of adjustment in capital accumulation and variable capacity utilisation. It is...

We discuss the scope of asymmetries in growth and inflation developments in the euro area countries, taking the euro area as the natural benchmark since the establishment of EMU. We start with a descriptive analysis of a set of indicators that can give a first idea of the likelihood of or extent...

Recently, the advantage of country diversification relative to sector diversification has been questioned especially against the background of the European monetary and financial integration. Correct estimates of the correlation matrix are central for the evaluation of the relative...

This paper proposes a methodology to analyze the implications of the Advanced Measurement Approach (AMA) for the assessment of operational risk put forward by the Basel II Accord. The methodology relies on an integrated procedure for the construction of the distribution of aggregate losses,...

In this paper, we analyze wether the sensitivity of credit spread changes to financial and macroeconomic variables depends on bond characteristics such as rating and maturity. First, we estimate the term structure of credit spreads for different rating categories by applying an extension of the...

This paper discusses macroeconomic and monetary policy-making at the European Commission, covering the period from the Rome Treaties to the Hague Summit. It is based on an analysis of public documents, archival research and interviews with former policy-makers. The paper starts with an overview...