The purpose of this paper is to examine the Inflation Targeting (IT) framework as it is applied in the case of Brazil since its adoption in June 1999. For this purpose we first summarize the macroeconometric model utilized by the Central Bank of Brazil (BCB) in its pursuit of the IT framework....

This paper advances the view that the intensity of creation of wants through advertising and marketing might be an influence on decisions made by Americans about how much time they should devote to paid work and how much time to leisure. In exploring this argument, we employ vector...

In this paper, we use individual micro data on workers combined with industry and regional data to study the wage dynamics of skilled and unskilled workers in Italy in the 1991-1998 period. In contrast to previous empirical studies, our data make it possible to analyse, within a single...

The deregulation and liberalization process towards establishing a single European financial market has some important implications for the insurance industries. Due to the increased competition, insurance firms have to adjust their costs and operate efficiently to survive in this new...

This paper uses a comprehensive firm level data set for the manufacturing sector in Italy to investigate the effect of government support on privately financed R&D expenditure. Estimates from a non-parametric matching procedure suggest that public assistance has a positive effect on private R&D...

This paper examines the determinants of Micro and Small and Enterprises (MSEs) access to credit in Ethiopia using detailed firm-level data collected in 2003. Its basic purpose is to identify the various attributes of a firm that determine its access to credit with an emphasis on the role of firm...

Using a recent macroeconomic database, we empirically estimate an 'erosion effect': we show that Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth decreases returns to experience. The 'erosion effect' is typically stronger within the rich and the most experienced countries in the world. This article...

Real-time estimates of potential output are used for the calculation of the cyclically adjusted budget balance, one of the main indicators in the assessment of the fiscal performance of EU member states. The estimation of potential output involves a decomposition of actual output into a cyclical...

This paper aims at analysing the impact of environmentally oriented innovative strategies on firms' economic performance in terms of employment, turnover and labour productivity growth. We exploit a unique dataset of 773 Italian service firms with 20 or more employees, based on 1993-1995...

Germany has experienced a period of extreme nominal and real wage moderation since the mid-1990s. Contrary to the expectations of liberal economists, this has failed to improve Germany's mediocre economic performance. However, Germany is now running substantial current account surpluses. One...