Germany Before and After Unification: A Strucutral VAR Analysis

Recent theoretical research in business cycle modelling has aimed at putting forward a unified framework for studying both short-term cycles and long-term growth. Empirical research based on structural vector-autoregression has established that the same factors which drive long-run growth also explain a large proportion of the movements of key macro variables at business cycle frequencies. The present paper aims at applying this approach to study the determinants of the post-unification downturn in Germany. The results suggest that German business cycles were not all alike. Whilst adverse supply shocks clearly matter before unification, it is primarily adverse aggregate demand shocks and a too tight monetary policy which dominate the German post-unification decline in output growth rates.