The objective of this paper is to explore the consequences of the correction of Euro area trade imbalances on real exchange rates. This analysis requires one additional dimension with respect to the standard Global Imbalances framework à la Obstfeld and Rogoff (2005), since the adjustment takes...

Drawing from confidential firm-level balance sheets for 17 European countries (13 Euro-Area), the paper documents the newly expanded database of cross-country comparable competitiveness-related indicators built by the Competitiveness Research Network (CompNet). The new database provides...

The elasticity of exports to exchange rate fluctuations has been the subject of a large literature without a clear consensus emerging. Using a novel sector-level dataset based on firm level information, we show that exchange rate elasticities double in size when the country and sector specific...

This paper links granular data of financial institutions to global macroeconomic variables using an infinite-dimensional vector autoregressive (IVAR) model framework. The approach taken allows for an assessment of the two-way links between the financial system and the macroeconomy, while...

The great trade collapse in the wake of the 2008-9 financial crisis provided a unique insight into the complexities inherent to international markets, and underlined a number of lessons for us to consider as we evaluate the shape of the global trade recovery. While the factors contributing to...

This brief aims to investigate to what extent the labour market framework in which firms operate has shaped their response to the Great Recession. We use a novel ECB firm-level dataset, which combines the CompNet and WDN datasets. Given the large cross-country heterogeneity in labour market...

As policy-makers refocus on growth, there is an urgent need to enhance our understanding of the factors at the root of competitiveness, in order to improve the appropriateness and precision of policy design. This policy brief argues that traditional aggregate indicators, such as unit labour...