In this paper, we present a simple but rigorous model of the dynamics of output and Unemployment in transition. We consider a worker-entrepreneur, who is 'locked in' to her current production technique, with a choice of continuing to work with it or search for a better technique. If she succeeds...

In this paper, we present a simple but rigorous model of the dynamics of output and Unemployment in transition. We consider a worker-entrepreneur, who is 'locked in' to her current production technique, with a choice of continuing to work with it or search for a better technique. If she succeeds...

In this paper we look at economic liberalization – both in the context of countries under transition from communism to capitalism, and in the context of developed market economies of North America and Western Europe. By “liberalization” we mean not just opening to external trade and...

Using a gravity model, we examine whether labor standards are important determinants of bilateral export performance for EU-15 countries over the period 1988-2001. We assess the conventional wisdom that countries with low labor standards and less stringent regulations have performed better in...

This paper describes the currency board regime operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina and assess its performance and sustainability in the context of the economic, political and institutional environment. To the best of our knowledge, our study seems to be unique in this respect. Based on the...

This paper reconsiders a long-held view that democracy is a hindrance to economic development, at least in its early stages, and, further, that authoritarianism works better than democracy, because it allows the state to mobilize more effectively the resources necessary for industrial take-off....

We argue that the traditional question ‘fixed vs. flexible exchange rates?’ is not well-defined, because ‘flexible exchange rates’ does not explicitly specify any particular monetary policy. In traditional analyses, ‘flexible exchange rates’ was interpreted as implying a fixed money...

Despite its exclusion from the Doha agenda, the issue of trade and labor standards remains an intensely discussed subject among economists, policymakers, international agencies and nongovernmental organizations. In the past few years, both World Trade Organization (WTO) and International Labor...

The paper considers the "trade and wages" debate, and proposes two alternative explanations to explain the rising wage differential (relative wage of the skilled vs. the unskilled), other than the conventional Stolper-Samuelson explanation. The first is an explanation dubbed "kaleidoscopic...