The organisation for economic cooperation and development

The global financial and economic crisis has prompted some scholars to suggest that a fundamental regulatory shift away from neoliberalism will take place – both in general and in the field of EU competition regulation. This paper shows that so far no radical break with the neoliberal type of competition regulation is heaving into sight. It sets out to explain this from the vantage point of a critical political economy perspective, which identifies the circumstances under which a crisis can result in a regulatory paradigm shift. Contrasting the current situation with the shift in EC/EU competition regulation after the crisis in the 1970s, the paper argues that the preconditions for a fundamental shift in this issue area are not present this time around. Several reasons account for this: the current crisis has been construed by economic and political elites as a crisis within and not of neoliberal capitalism; the social power configuration underpinning the neoliberal order remains unaltered; no clear counter-project has surfaced; the European Commission has been (and remains) in a position to oppose radical changes; and finally, there are no signs of a wider paradigm shift in the EU's regulatory architecture.     

A Kaleckian Perspective on Financialisation and Distribution in Three Main Eurozone Countries before and after the Crisis: France,Germany and Spain

The purpose of this article is twofold. First, we examine if, and to what extent, a general Kaleckian analysis of the potential effects of financialisation on income shares in advanced capitalist economies is of relevance for the three Eurozone countries under investigation—France, Germany and Spain—in the period before the recent financial and economic crisis. Second, we study changes in the financialisation–distribution nexus that have occurred in the course of and after the financial and economic crisis. We find that the countries examined here have shown broad similarities regarding redistribution before the crisis, although there are some differences in the underlying determinants. These differences have continued during the period after the crisis and have led to different results in the development of distribution since then.     

The welfare cost of banking regulation

The Basel Accords promote the adoption of capital adequacy requirements to increase the banking sector's stability. Unfortunately, this type of regulation can hamper economic growth by shifting banks' portfolios from more productive, risky investment projects toward less productive but safer projects. This paper introduces banking regulation in an overlapping-generations model and studies how it affects economic growth, banking sector stability, and welfare. In this model, a banking crisis is initiated by an aggregated shock (in the risky sector) in a banking system with implicit bailout, and banking regulation is modeled as a constraint on the maximal share of banks' portfolios that can be allocated to risky assets. This model allows us to evaluate quantitatively the key trade-off, inherent in this type of regulation, between ensuring banking stability and fostering economic growth. The model implies an optimal level of regulation that prevents crises but at the same time is detrimental to growth. We find that the overall effect of optimal regulation on social welfare is positive when productivity shocks are sufficiently high (for example, in the subprime banking crisis episode) and economic agents are sufficiently risk-averse. Finally, we find that there is a trade-off between regulating the economy upfront (i.e. before the shock) and facing the challenge of making a huge bailout after the crisis.     

论后危机下的浙江民企转型升级

后危机下给各国政府、企业带来的最重要的反思是如何改变造成这场全球金融危机的增长模式,可以说危机成为＂倒逼＂转型升级的难得机遇。而浙江民企在经历三十多年的高速发展之后,也面临经济周期中的转折,危机的爆发加速暴露了其发展中的问题。同时以此为契机,分析了转型升级面临的国内外经济环境,提出后危机下浙江民营企业如何谋求转型升级的路径。     

基于通胀压力分析政府救市政策的退出

在国际金融危机中,我国政府出台了大规模的救市计划以应对冲击.而在后金融危机时期,由于一些宏观经济因素发生变化,例如通货膨胀压力增大等,政府救市政策自然应逐步退出.笔者选择基于防范通货膨胀的视角来分析政府应如何选择最佳的救市政策退出方式,通过建立脉冲响应函数,分析金融危机中三类主要的政府救市政策即财政政策、货币政策和流动性政策对通货膨胀率的影响,并根据三类救市政策不同的影响力度和滞后期,判断其合理的退出方式.     

The behaviour of Russian industrial enterprises under transformation

Regional economic growth in Russia's regions in 1995–2000 is analysed with particular attention paid to FDI and how it influenced growth during this period. FDI appears to have been essential before the 1998 crisis in helping the economy grow despite the initial chaos of the transition. Larger regional economies that have garnered most FDI and perhaps gone further with institutional reforms that can assist in capturing the full benefits of FDI are likely to lead economic growth in the future. All regions need to take advantage now of the favourable economic environment to assess and learn from prior FDI experience to foster future growth should the price of oil and the remaining advantage of a depreciated currency change. No evidence was found that region-wide corruption hindered economic growth in the 1990s.     

Monetary policy in a financial crisis

What are the economic effects of an interest rate cut when an economy is in the midst of a financial crisis? Under what conditions will a cut stimulate output and employment, and raise welfare? Under what conditions will a cut have the opposite effects? We answer these questions in a general class of open economy models, where a financial crisis is modelled as a time when collateral constraints are suddenly binding. We find that when there are frictions in adjusting the level of output in the traded good sector and in adjusting the rate at which that output can be used in other parts of the economy, then a cut in the interest rate is most likely to result in a welfare-reducing fall in output and employment. When these frictions are absent, a cut in the interest rate improves asset positions and promotes a welfare-increasing economic expansion.     

人口老龄化与经济发展水平:国际比较及其启示

人口老龄化已成为全球性的人口发展趋势。与世界其他老年人口比例相当的国家相比,中国的经济发展水平并不差;与世界其他经济发展水平相当的国家相比,中国的人口老龄化程度也并不是最严重。面对潜在的危机和挑战,需要未雨绸缪,也不能过于悲观。政府对于当下生育率和老龄问题的态度与作为,是决定一个国家或地区未来老龄危机的关键因素。     

Financial integration faced with the crisis: comparative cases of Greece and Portugal

The recent economic and financial crisis affected many countries in the world in several aspects. Studies of crisis impacts on different aspects of economies would be useful to better understand the actions of each part faced with crisis, as well as the influences of each part on others. In the present research, we studied and compared the international financial integration level and its variations caused by the recent crisis for Greece and Portugal that are strongly affected. Using the Feldstein–Horioka thesis and applying ARDL model with error correction, we measured the financial integration level of these two countries. Also, using simulation, we verified how such a level can be changed by the crisis. We found that the Greece’s financial integration level is affected by the recent crisis, while this crisis has not affected the Portugal’s financial integration level. Moreover, the results for both cases were somehow considered as support for the Feldstein–Horioka initial hypothesis.     

Minutes of Business Meeting,December 30, 1953

Corporations institutionalize managerial and professional positions in a hierarchical pyramid in which many young professionals begin work at a lower and wider level of the pyramid where positions are numerous. However, as the professionals start climbing up the pyramid in their careers, the number of positions rapidly declines at higher levels. The pyramid gets narrower as the professionals climb up into fewer and fewer positions. Since they usually either move up or out in their career climb, as the young professionals begin aging, more and more of them are forced out to look for jobs elsewhere or eventually, to retire. This article develops a simple model that shows how this particular way of organizing work results in premature retirement and aging for many workers. Alternative ways of organizing work are discussed in which premature aging and retirement do not take place. Furthermore, a number of implications are explored and various projections made all of which show that the so-called future crisis in the Social Security and Medicare Systems in the United States is exaggerated. If reform is really needed, what is called for is adjustment in the way work is organized, not abandonment of security for the elderly.     

对应分析和T-TEST在我国居民收入结构中的应用——基于2006年《中国统计年鉴》的实证研究

从上世纪末至今,我国政府已经在全国范围内实施了包括“西部大开发”和“建设新农村”在内的多项重大的宏观经济政策。本文以“我国2005年城乡居民人均收入的统计数据”为基础,以“居民收入结构和水平”为视角,以“对应分析和T-TEST”为方法,以“SAS8.2统计分析软件”为工具,对宏观经济政策的经济效果进行了检验。分析结果表明：1.城乡、东西部地区居民的收入结构较政策实施前发生了显著的积极变化;2.城乡间、东西部居民的人均收入水平的提高,但差距在扩大。     

EXPORT-LINKED EMPLOYMENT IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

This paper examines relevant data sources and develops a methodology based on available data in order to estimate the level of employment for a region that is linked to exports of goods and services. The methodology allows for the estimation of direct and indirect export-related employment at the 2-digit SIC industry level. In addition, the paper describes how the direction of regional trade can be estimated, and how regional employment linked to exports to major trading partners can be calculated. This methodology is then applied using data from the Southern California region. Tables with estimates of total regional export-linked employment (by industry) and the regional employment associated with exports to each of the region's top 10 export trading partners are included. The usefulness of this type of database with regard to economic policy is discussed, as well as regional economic implications of the current economic crisis in Asia. ( JEL F16, R15, R58, R23)     

THE SIZE OF HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTION: METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS AND ESTIMATES FOR THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY IN THE PERIOD 1964 TO 19801

Household production as well as other informal economic activities have received scant attention in economic science. In the last decade the view has been taken that there has been a big shift from formal to informal production. In order to examine this trend this article presents estimates for the size of household production for the Federal Republic of Germany which are based on time-budget data collected from 1964 to 1980. To show the sensitivity of the results two different estimating methods the Opportunity Cost Method and the Market Cost Method, are used. Since productivity growth took place not only in the formal economy but also in household production, estimates will be presented which take productivity growth explicitly into account. The article concludes with a comparison of estimates for other countries.     

全球公共债务危机:发生、发展与未来

全球公共债务危机从短期看是迅速扩大的公共开支,从长期看是政府的赤字财政政策,从根源看则是资本主义经济的运行方式。公共债务危机不仅进一步加重经济复苏的难度,而且对世界政治也将产生深远影响。对我国来说,不仅要应对全球公共债务危机的冲击和影响,更要分析债务危机形成的原因,防范公共债务危机的发生,以保证中国公共债务的可持续运用和中国经济的可持续发展。     

Editor's Feature

This study makes a number of observations about the way in which the current crisis in particular, but economic crises more generally, are reported upon by the media. Considering terminology used to describe the financial crisis of 2007/2008 by employing a dataset of 956 articles from The Economist, we study what terms are used, why, and how they evolve. We consider how the frequency of negative emotional terms and the frequency of negative economic terms increase from the period of no-crisis to the period of the crisis. Increasing incidence lowers levels of consumer confidence. We predict that as the crisis evolves the nature of the terminology used to describe it will change, and that the present crisis will receive a special name, like the "Great Depression" of the 1930s. We explore a number of possibilities, and conclude that the preferred name will be the "Credit Crunch."     

Matching Economic Development Policy to the Local Context: Must We?

This paper examines 2013 data on high-tech manufacturing employment across metropolitan statistical areas in the United States. The purpose is to discover how a broad set of social/demographic/economic variables relate to varying densities of high-tech manufacturing employment. Two questions are asked: Do social and industrial circumstances evolve together, as suggested by institutionalist theories? Is there any evidence to suggest that economic development policy is likely to be effective at creating the conditions that might invite local development of high-tech manufacturing?     

The Great Recession,Austerity and Inequality: Lessons from Ireland

The advent of the Great Recession and the widespread adoption of fiscal austerity policies have heightened concern about inequality and its effects. We examine how the distribution of income in Ireland—a country which experienced one of the most severe economic contractions—has evolved over the years 2008 to 2013. Standard cross‐sectional analysis of the income distribution shows broad stability in the Gini coefficient and in decile shares, with one main exception: the share of the bottom decile fell sharply, with the largest fall in average incomes being for that group. Longitudinal analysis shows that the falls in the average income for the bottom decile were not due to decreasing income for those remaining in the bottom decile, but to falls in income from those initially located in higher deciles. The extent of redistribution through taxes and transfers increased strongly, as measured by the Reynolds‐Smolensky index, which rose from 0.20 before the onset of the crisis to 0.27 in 2013. Analysis indicates that about three‐quarters of this increased redistribution is due to automatic stabilisers and one‐quarter to discretionary policy changes.     

Endogenous structural change and crisis in a multiple time-scales growth model

The slow and endogenous twist of economic macro-structure makes up an important evolutionary feature of capitalist economies, and may be at the root of structural crisis. In this line, a Goodwinian growth model with increasing returns and profit-sharing that tries to picture a simple scenario of the seventies crisis is considered. It is shown that the exhaustion of the Kaldor-Verdoorn “productivity law” can entail, in a nonlinear framework, a “catastrophic” bifurcation from a “high” to a “low” growth path. Slow/fast dynamical systems then allow one to formalize a multiple time-scales dynamics where the growth path is shaped by the structural framework in which it takes place, but has also a long -un feedback. Structural change and crisis appear as long term and endogenous outcomes.     

Teaching (un)sustainability? University sustainability commitments and student experiences of introductory economics

The three largest public universities in British Columbia, Canada have signed the Talloires Declaration, committing themselves to promoting sustainability and creating expectations that they will integrate sustainability across the curriculum in order to improve students' environmental literacy and stewardship. About 40% of North American university students take a mainstream introductory economics course; few of these students take economics at more advanced levels. As such, introductory economics courses are an important vehicle for students to learn economic theory; they have the potential to contribute to the knowledge that students can mobilize to foster sustainability. Interviews were held with 54 students who had recently completed an introductory level mainstream economics course at one of the three universities. Students reported that introductory economics courses place little emphasis on the environment and sustainability, they recalled course content with normative connotations that are problematic from a sustainability perspective and they described how discussion of the limitations of mainstream theory was set aside. Student reports of the insights introductory economics offers into environmental problems imply that these courses are failing to substantively increase students' understanding of sustainability and linkages between the environment and the economy. Findings suggest that current introductory economics curriculum undermines the universities' sustainability commitments.     

Inequality,Redistribution, and the Financial Crisis: Evidence from Distributional National Accounts for Austria

In this paper, we provide novel findings regarding the distributional effects of the global financial and economic crisis and how redistribution operated during this time, using detailed data for Austria. We construct distributional national accounts for the period 2004–2016 by combining survey data, tabulated tax data, and detailed national accounts data. The comprehensive data set allows us to analyze the distribution of macroeconomic income growth across the income distribution and to explore the evolution of income inequality over time. Our results suggest that as the distribution of growth changed over time, this had considerable repercussions for inequality, which started to decline at the very beginning of the economic and financial crisis, but increased again after 2012. We find that capital income largely determined both the level and the dynamics of income inequality. Government spending was found to play a key role for redistributive effects across the income distribution. In particular, in-kind transfers redistributed pre-tax income to a large extent. Our results show further that individuals with lower educational levels and younger individuals faced negative growth in pre-tax income over the years and also benefited considerably from redistribution.