Italy, which is sometimes considered a laggard in terms of social and economic reforms, can boast a pension system that is, by and large, functioning sufficiently well in terms of ensuring an adequate purchasing power to retirees and a financially sustainable outlook in the long term, even when...

A specificity of the current French system is that a private sector worker is currently covered by two mandatory public pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) schemes: a general defined benefit (DB) scheme - which is the main component - managed by the state and a points scheme (AgircArrco) managed by social...

Many countries followed the German example in increasing the legal retirement age, reaching the German standard envisaged for 2030 (of 67 years of age) at an earlier stage (in Ireland: 2021; the Netherlands: 2021; and Denmark: 2022) or even exceeding it (in Ireland: with 68 years, starting in 2028).

A specific feature in the Finnish pension system is rule-based preparation for mortality change. The earned pension capital is adjusted to life expectancy and the lowest age limit of the flexible retirement age will be adapted so that the ratio of expected years in employment and retirement is...

The coronavirus pandemic is bringing with it the prospect of severe financial and economic crises. The article investigates its economic consequences in terms of financial instability, economic recession, lower incomes and policy challenges at the national and European levels. What are some of...

Germany’s austerity-oriented economic policy is the wrong approach. Markets need demand stimulation to achieve full use of resources, argues Krugman, a Keynesian economist. Neoclassical economists have been warning that expansionary macroeconomic policies are not only useless but can even be...

The proposed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the period 2021–2027 will be more flexible and, presumably, more effective. To provide for sufficient ambition and prevent a race to the bottom, national strategic plans will be introduced with quantitative targets covering both policy pillars....

This paper presents a pragmatic approach to calculating the total economic loss induced by a cartel, focusing on the European trucks cartel (1997–2011). This comprehensible and transparent approach builds on the theory of monopoly pricing and uses the publicly available data of the infringing...