The Euro Area and the Financial Crisis

The Euro Area and the Financial Crisis
Author: Miroslav Beblavý
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 373
Release: 2011-10-06
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1139503634

The financial crisis of 2007–10 has presented a number of key policy challenges for those concerned with the long-term stability of the euro area. It has shown that price stability as provided by the European Central Bank is not enough to guarantee financial stability, and exposed fault lines in governance and deficiencies in the architecture of the financial supervisory and regulatory framework. This book addresses these and other issues, including why the crisis affected some countries more than others, whether the euro is still attractive for new EU states, and what policy changes and structural reforms, both macro and micro, should be undertaken to ensure its future viability. Written by a team of leading academic and central bank economists, the book also includes chapters on the cross-country incidence of the crisis, the Irish crisis and ECB monetary policy during the crisis, and studies on Spain, the Baltics, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Republic of Lithuania

Republic of Lithuania
Author: International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 36
Release: 2014-05-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 148437505X

This Selected Issues paper focuses on sustainability of public finances and low inflation in Lithuania. Lithuania aims to adopt the euro in 2015. Over the medium term, inflation in Lithuania will likely run somewhat higher than in the euro area on average, but this will be driven by continuing income convergence. The long-term inflation track record is favorable, and Lithuania has demonstrated the ability to deliver adjustment when needed without recourse to exchange rate depreciation. The benign outlook for public finances and inflation is contingent on historical patterns of economic policymaking and private sector behavior remaining in place after euro adoption.

Is the Euro Secure?

Is the Euro Secure?
Author: Hermann Witte
Publisher: LIT Verlag Münster
Total Pages: 167
Release: 2016
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3643908334

The economic crisis in Greece led to discussions on whether the euro was secure. To answer this question, first the functions of money, the theoretical basis of monetary policy, and the criteria for the security of a currency must be discussed. The crisis demonstrates that neither Keynesian interest control nor the monetarisms control of the money amount can solve the problem that led up to the crisis. The new approach of monetary theory discussed here is based on equilibriums of goods, money, and labor markets. The found equilibrium solution is not identity (approach of monetarism) and not "equilibrium with unemployment" (Keynes). But the approach in this book leads to a secure currency. (Series: Lingener Studies on Management and Technology / Lingener Studien zu Management und Technik, Vol. 6) [Subject: Economics]

Assessing Competitiveness Using Industry Unit Labor Costs

Assessing Competitiveness Using Industry Unit Labor Costs
Author: International Monetary Fund
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 60
Release: 2012-04-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1475587732

Conceptual ambiguities and statistical weaknesses hamper the assessment of external competitiveness. The term competitiveness, while applied extensively, is often imprecisely defined, which can result in analytical errors and mistaken policy advice. Furthermore, aggregate statistical measures of competitiveness in terms of exchange rate misalignment can be biased. To address these issues, this paper makes two contributions. First, it clarifies the external competitiveness concept, highlighting the dichotomy between productivity-driven long-run growth and short-run deviations from the underlying growth trajectory, which can be related to exchange rate misalignment. Second, it develops a disaggregated statistical approach for examining competitiveness based on unit labor costs at the three digit industry level in a group of comparable countries. The case of Slovakia is used to illustrate these concepts, but the analytical insights have general application.

Five years of the euro: “Teuro” or strong currency?

Five years of the euro: “Teuro” or strong currency?
Author: Julia Mahr
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
Total Pages: 26
Release: 2008-08-29
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3640148703

Seminar paper from the year 2007 in the subject Business economics - Economic Policy, grade: 2,7, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (Lehrstuhl für Auslandswissenschaft), course: Seminar: International Trade, language: English, abstract: The major event of introducing the single currency in 1999 did not have a great effect in daily life because the consumers in all twelve countries were still using their national banknotes and coins in payment transactions. Officially the euro replaced the national currencies, with the national currency units becoming sub-units of the euro but it existed only as scriptural or ‘book‘ money. That meant that first of all especially the world of business and finance began to use the euro in cashless operations. For them the transition happened immediately but on the other side for administrations and business the transition period took longer because they had to change their systems for accounting, pricing and payments over to the euro. To familiarise the people living in the euro-area-countries with the euro, dual pricing on labels was introduced and so the general public recognized the changing.

Making the European Monetary Union

Making the European Monetary Union
Author: Harold James
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 584
Release: 2012-11-19
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0674068084

Europe’s financial crisis cannot be blamed on the Euro, James contends in this probing exploration of the whys, whens, whos, and what-ifs of European monetary union. The current crisis goes deeper, to conundrums that were debated but not resolved at the time of the Euro’s invention. And, Euro or no Euro, these clashes will continue into the future.

The Birth of the Euro

The Birth of the Euro
Author: Otmar Issing
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 260
Release: 2008-09-18
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1139473573

Today, 318 million people in 15 countries use the Euro, which now rivals the importance of the US Dollar in the world economy. This is an outcome that few would have predicted with confidence when the Euro was launched. How can we explain this success and what are the prospects for the future? There is nobody better placed to answer these questions than Otmar Issing, who as a founding member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (1998–2006), was one of the Euro's principal architects. His story is a unique insider account, combining personal memoir with reference to the academic and policy literature. Free of jargon, this is a very human reflection on a unique historical experiment and a key reference for all academics, policy makers, and 'Eurowatchers' seeking to understand how the Euro has got to where it is today and what challenges lie ahead.

The Euro, Inflation and Consumers' Perceptions

The Euro, Inflation and Consumers' Perceptions
Author: Paolo Giovane
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 245
Release: 2008-04-16
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3540783709

On 1 January 2002, euro banknotes and coins were introduced in twelve EU Member States. Three more countries joined in the following years, and over 300 million people now use the euro in their daily transactions. The currency changeover was a technical success. From the very start, however, the vast majority of euro area citizens held the single currency responsible for a sharp rise in prices and a subsequent decline in their personal economic fortunes. This book puts forward convincing empirical evidence, primarily drawn from Italy’s experience, to establish whether the introduction of the euro has had a major impact on prices, and if not, why so many people believe it has. Its significance lies not only in the documentation of a historic event, but also and more importantly, in the lessons it provides, which concern the public’s understanding of inflation, the correct assessment of the effects of the single currency, and the need for appropriate measures when other countries adopt the euro.

Informal Governance in the European Union

Informal Governance in the European Union
Author: Thomas Christiansen
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2003-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9781843769729

How are the deals and decisions of the EU made - in the meeting rooms and at the conference tables, or by informal networks in the back corridors of power?