More than a year has passed since the beginning of the political uprising against the authoritarian regimes in the Arab world. But, as demonstrated by the recent dramatic developments in Syria, the process is far from over. Meanwhile nations which have already freed themselves from their...

The European Union (EU) represents a large and highly integrated bloc which contributed 19.4% of global GDP and over 30% of global exports in 2012. As of July 1, 2013 it consists of 28 member states. All of them belong to the customs union and the Single European Market (SEM) in which most...

This report provides estimates of the VAT Gap for 26 EU Member States for 2012, as well as revised estimates for the period 2009-2011. It is a follow-up to the report “Study to quantify and analyse the VAT Gap in the EU-27 Member States”,1 published in September 2013. This update...

After completing the painful transition of the 1990s, former communist countries enjoyed a period of rapid economic growth which was underpinned by three groups of factors: (i) benefits of market reforms and transition-related restructuring in the 1990s; (ii) increasing participation in the...

In 1989, the former communist countries embarked on a transition from centrally planned command economies to market economies (and from repressive dictatorships to Western-style democracies). In addressing the question,"What is the optimal strategy for this transformation?", the author revisits...

This paper provides an analysis of the fiscal challenges faced by the eight transition economies, which joined the European Union (EU) in May 2004. More than half of them run excessive fiscal deficits being partly a legacy of an early transition period, partly – a consequence of additional...

The public debt crisis is not limited to Greece or to the Euro area but includes several developed economies. Thus, suggesting that the Eurozone is undergoing a currency crisis or is in danger of disintegration is not the right diagnosis. However, if prudent fiscal policies, fiscal discipline...

The U.S. economy’s rapidly growing trade and current account deficits and systematic weakening of the dollar against the Euro and other currencies raised several concerns about its future as the global reserve currency. Skeptics of the U.S.’s enduring economic and political power...