Two of the four macroeconomic adjustment programmes, Portugal and Ireland s, can be considered a success in the sense that the initial expectations in terms of adjustment, both fiscal and external, were broadly fulfilled. A rebound based on exports has taken hold in these two countries, but a...

Deviations of policy interest rates from the levels implied by the Taylor rule have been persistent after the turn of the century even before the financial crisis. These deviations could be due to lower real interest rates, as stated by the savings glut hypothesis as well as the apparent success...

Der mittel- und osteuropäische Banken- und Versicherungsmarkt konnte nach dem Fall des Eisernen Vorhangs hohe Zuwächse verzeichnen. Dennoch kann sowohl der Banken- als auch der Versicherungssektor in den mittel- und osteuropäischen Ländern (MOEL) nach wie vor als ein "Emerging Market"...

This paper analyzes whether differences in institutional structures on capital markets contribute to explaining why some OECD-countries, in particular the Anglo-Saxon countries, have been much more successful over the last two decades in producing employment growth and in reducing unemployment...