Characterizing macroeconomic shocks in the CEECs

In this paper we analyze the nature of the shocks hitting the Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs) over the recent years. To this end, we first evaluate the relative importance of symmetric versus asymmetric shocks, and then extract their temporary component. Our final aim would be assessing the vulnerability of the CEECs to temporary and asymmetric shocks, which would be the most harmful case for the operation of a monetary union. Finally, a comparison with the case of the current EMU members is also presented. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2005