How should the fiscal policy process of the Member States of the EU be designed? This question is presently the subject of lively discussion among policy-makers and economists alike. The debate has been fuelled by the recent controversy concerning the budgetary positions of Germany and France,...

Special topic: Using fat survey data to nowcast euro area GDP growth. After losses in 2018-Q1 and a broad sideways movement in Q2, the euro-area (EA) and EU Economic Sentiment Indicators (ESI) posted moderate decreases of 0.9 (EU) and 1.4 (EA) points in the third quarter. In both cases, the...

Economic activity in the euro area has accelerated. The pick-up in GDP growth in recent quarters is part of a fairly synchronised global upswing in advanced economies and emerging markets alike. Higher external demand appears to have encouraged European firms to invest more and it has dampened...