The recent revision (March 2005) of the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) has confirmed the 3% deficit/GDP ratio as the pillar of the excessive deficits procedure envisaged by the Maastricht Treaty for member countries of the EMU. Since the deficit/GDP ceiling is still in place, research on its...

When referring to the inflation trends over the last decade, economists speak of "puzzles": a “missing disinflation” puzzle in the aftermath of the Great Recession, and a ”missing inflation” one in the years of recovery to nowadays. To this, a specific "excess deflation" puzzle may be...

In this paper we present an empirical analysis of the "credit-cost channel" (CCC) of monetary policy transmission. This model combines bank credit supply, as a means whereby monetary policy affects economic activity ("credit channel"), and interest rates on loans as a cost to firms ("cost...