This papers studies the CDS-bond basis, i.e. a measure of price discrepanciesbetween CDS and bonds spreads, for a sample of investment-graded US rms. Resultsshow that during the 2007/09 nancial crisis the basis was time varying and negativelycorrelated to: the \Libor-OIS" spread, a proxy for the...

Instrumentell betrachtet ist die Finanzmarktkrise darauf zurückzuführen, dass zunächst eine Reihe von Kreditinstituten in Finanzinstrumente investiert hatten, deren Funktionsweise sie nicht vollständig verstanden hatten und deren Risiken sie nicht korrekt bewerten konnten. Als die ersten...

While results are starting to emerge, not much is known yet about the dynamics of the labormarkets of the former Eastern economies, especially in the context of the current FinancialCrisis. Arguably, this is mainly due to paucity of (panel) data. By examining labor markettransitions, earnings...

By allowing for imperfectly informed markets and the role of private information, we offer newinsights about observed deviations of portfolio concentrations in domestic relative to foreignrisky assets, or “home bias”, from what standard finance models predict. Our model ascribesthe...

This paper reviews the performance of the euro area since the euro's launch 20 years ago. It argues that the euro crisis has exposed existential flaws in the euro regime. Intra-area divergences and the corresponding buildup of imbalances had remained unchecked prior to the crisis. As those...

Systemic bank problems arise for a large number of causes and in spite of both active banking supervision and market discipline. Once a problem has emerged, swift action is needed to limit further losses, avoid financial destabilization, and regain efficient markets.The restructuring exercise is...

This paper investigates the evolution of the (conditional) volatility of returns on three Scandinavian markets (Finland, Norway and Sweden) over the turbulent period of the past decade, namely the overlapping periods of financial liberalisation, drastically changing macroeconomic conditions and...

The macroeconomic reasons for the recent banking crises in the Nordic countries are analysed using an econometric model estimated with panel data from the 1980s and 1990s.Two alternative dependent variables are used: the ratio of banks' loan losses to lending and enterprise bankruptcies per...

The study focuses on the role of deposit banks in the makings of the Finnish credit cycle of 1986-1995.A preliminary descriptive analysis suggests that banks' credit supply had a positive effect on credit growth in the boom period and a negative effect in the early 1990s.There are furthermore...

The "great recession" has affected labor markets in Euro-area countries in very different ways. This chapter documents two important aspects of their response: the impact effect of the recession on the rate of unemployment, and the persistence of high unemployment. We find that countries lie on...