Inflation in the euro area has been below the European Central Bank's target for almost a year now and it is also expected to remain at a very low level in the near future. On the one hand, such a low level of inflation is not in line with the ECB's objective. On the other hand, there is the...

Inflation in the euro area has been below the European Central Bank's target for almost a year now and it is also expected to remain at a very low level in the near future. On the one hand, such a low level of inflation is not in line with the ECB's objective. On the other hand, there is the...

Although the European Central Bank (ECB) has been pursuing an expansionary monetary policy course for many years, inflation in the euro area remains extremely weak. Furthermore, as the present Wochenbericht clearly demonstrates, the inflation expectations in the euro area are no longer firmly...

The European Central Bank (ECB) decided at its Council meeting in January to implement a comprehensive program to purchase bonds, including euro area government bonds. The purchases are intended to anchor the rate of inflation and inflation expectations at below but close to two percent again....

The European Central Bank (ECB) decided to implement a comprehensive program to purchase bonds, including government bonds, at its Council meeting in January. The purchases are intended to anchor the rate of inflation and inflation expectations at just under two percent again. Given its lack of...

Due to a weak winter half-year, the German economy will only grow by 0.4 percent in 2013. However, the economic slowdown seems to be coming to an end now; growth in 2014 is expected to be above average at 1.8 percent. The global economy is experiencing an upswing again; growth in many emerging...

In the face of interest rates having hit their zero lower bound in major economies, large-scale asset purchases have become an important weapon of central banks in recent years. It is, however, not clear whether and under which circumstances such policy measures produce the desired effects. This...

Not just since the European Central Bank announced the large-scale purchase of government bonds a few weeks ago, large-scale asset purchases have always been a controversially discussed topic. This DIW Roundup summarizes the measures that have been taken by central banks in Japan, USA and UK and...

The debate about TARGET2, the payment system of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), has resulted in controversial discussions in Germany in recent years. The present study by DIW Berlin concludes that fears often expressed in this context of the risks to Germany are largely unfounded....

Target 2 - the payment system of the Eurosystem - caused a controversial debate in Germany during the recent past. This report reaches the conclusion, that any fear expressed with respect to potentially too large risks for Germany is to a large extent unfounded. Rather, Germany should be...