Níl an t-ábhar seo ar fáil i nGaeilge.
Nicholai Benalal
- 7 January 2025
- ECONOMIC BULLETIN - ARTICLEEconomic Bulletin Issue 8, 2024Details
- Abstract
- NextGenerationEU (NGEU) is the largest ever programme of the EU and aims to support its economic recovery after the pandemic crisis and to modernise economies, with a focus on digital and green transformation. This article provides an updated description of the implementation effort as well as an assessment by ECB staff on the impact on the euro area economy. Based on a variety of models and scenarios, it is estimated that the public expenditures and structural reforms linked to NGEU will have a positive impact on euro area output, while the impact on inflation is expected to be muted. The expected positive effect on potential output should help reduce government debt ratios, as projected for the main beneficiary euro area countries. Compared with the initial assessment by ECB staff from 2022, the macroeconomic impact of NGEU is expected to materialise later but to be of similar size. Delays in the implementation of NGEU-linked expenditures and reforms are the key factor behind this reprofiling. The cumulated estimate remains broadly unchanged in the presence of two opposite forces: first, an increase in the nominal RRF-related investment financing grants to euro area countries and second, the unanticipated inflation which eroded the real value of the funds.
- JEL Code
- C54 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric Modeling→Quantitative Policy Modeling
E02 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→General→Institutions and the Macroeconomy
E22 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Consumption, Saving, Production, Investment, Labor Markets, and Informal Economy→Capital, Investment, Capacity
E62 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook→Fiscal Policy
F45 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance
H87 : Public Economics→Miscellaneous Issues→International Fiscal Issues, International Public Goods
O52 : Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth→Economywide Country Studies→Europe
- 2 December 2024
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 362Details
- Abstract
- This paper takes stock of the implementation of the NextGenerationEU (NGEU) programme in the euro area four years after its inception, focusing on its principal instrument, the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The paper provides an updated quantitative assessment of its past and future impact on the euro area economy, using a set of models and scenarios to account for the uncertainty that still surrounds the implementation of this programme. The public expenditures and structural reforms linked to the RRF have the potential to increase the level of euro area gross domestic product (GDP) by around 0.4-0.9% by 2026 and 0.8-1.2% by 2031, depending on capital productivity and the degree of absorption of RRF funds. The contribution of structural reforms to these output effects is expected to increase over time, while the initially prevailing impact of RRF-funded public expenditures fades away. We provide tentative empirical evidence that reforms have started to modestly improve the growth outlook of some euro area Member States by increasing their institutional quality. The expected long-run increase in output is in turn a key factor behind the decline in the government debt ratios we project for the main NGEU beneficiary euro area Member States. At the same time, we estimate that NGEU will have a limited impact on euro area inflation. Compared with previous ECB staff analysis published in 2022, the macroeconomic impact of NGEU, particularly on GDP and government debt ratios, is expected to shift over time due to widespread delays in the implementation of NGEU-linked expenditures and reforms. It is crucial that euro area Member States address implementation challenges over the remaining lifetime of this programme to fully reap its benefits.
- JEL Code
- C54 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric Modeling→Quantitative Policy Modeling
E02 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→General→Institutions and the Macroeconomy
E22 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Consumption, Saving, Production, Investment, Labor Markets, and Informal Economy→Capital, Investment, Capacity
E62 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook→Fiscal Policy
F45 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance
H87 : Public Economics→Miscellaneous Issues→International Fiscal Issues, International Public Goods
O52 : Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth→Economywide Country Studies→Europe
- 11 January 2022
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 288Details
- Abstract
- A key element of the European reform agenda is to simplify the EU fiscal governance framework by moving towards a single debt anchor and a single operational indicator as the basis for formulating fiscal targets and assessing compliance. This paper puts forward an in-depth analysis of two alternative fiscal performance indicators currently used in the EU fiscal framework: the change in the structural balance and the expenditure benchmark. Comparing these two indicators allows us to identify options for the design of a fiscal performance measure – such as assumptions on cyclical adjustment and the inclusion of fiscal variables – and assess their policy impact. Our paper finds that the expenditure benchmark used in the EU fiscal governance framework has advantages over the change in the structural balance. However, it still has scope for improvement. The paper also shows that taking account of interest payments in the expenditure benchmark would make fiscal policy more supportive of the monetary policy stance.
- JEL Code
- C54 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric Modeling→Quantitative Policy Modeling
E62 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook→Fiscal Policy
E65 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook→Studies of Particular Policy Episodes
F54 : International Economics→International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy→Colonialism, Imperialism, Postcolonialism
F47 : International Economics→Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance→Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
- 22 June 2018
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 210Details
- Abstract
- Structural policies in the euro area are of great interest for the Eurosystem, particularly as they can support the smooth functioning of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and the effectiveness of monetary policy. This paper adopts a broad definition of structural policies, analysing not only the benefits of efficient labour, product and financial market regulations, but also emphasising the importance of good governance and efficient institutions that ensure high quality and impartial public services, the rule of law and the control of rent-seeking. The paper concludes that there are many opportunities for enhanced structural policies in EU and euro area countries which can yield substantial gains by boosting long-term income and employment growth and supporting social fairness, also via better and more equal opportunities. It provides empirical and model-based analyses on the impacts and the interactions of structural policies, highlighting synergies between growth and inclusiveness, while acknowledging that structural policy changes need to be country-specific to reflect national conditions and social preferences. Welldesigned structural policies would also strengthen economic resilience and convergence of Member States, bringing the euro area closer to the requirements of an optimal currency area and improving the transmission of monetary policy. The paper also discusses the political economy causes of the sluggish implementation of socially beneficial structural policies and assesses ways to deal with possible shortterm costs of reforms.
- JEL Code
- D60 : Microeconomics→Welfare Economics→General
E24 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Consumption, Saving, Production, Investment, Labor Markets, and Informal Economy→Employment, Unemployment, Wages, Intergenerational Income Distribution, Aggregate Human Capital
G28 : Financial Economics→Financial Institutions and Services→Government Policy and Regulation
H11 : Public Economics→Structure and Scope of Government→Structure, Scope, and Performance of Government
J08 : Labor and Demographic Economics→General→Labor Economics Policies
O47 : Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth→Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity→Measurement of Economic Growth, Aggregate Productivity, Cross-Country Output Convergence
O43 : Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth→Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity→Institutions and Growth
- 22 May 2006
- OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES - No. 45Details
- Abstract
- The aim of this study is to investigate the extent to which the dispersion of real GDP growth rates has changed over the past few years and whether the synchronisation of business cycles has increased among the euro area countries. The study is divided into two main parts. The first focuses on the dispersion of real GDP growth rates across the euro area countries, while the second studies the synchronisation of business cycles within the euro area. The study shows first that dispersion of real GDP growth rates across the euro area countries in both unweighted and weighted terms has no apparent upward or downward trend during the period 1970-2004 as a whole. Second, since the beginning of the 1990s, the dispersion of real GDP growth rates across the euro area countries has largely reflected lasting trend growth differences, and less so cyclical differences, with some countries persistently exhibiting output growth either above or below the euro area average. Among other things, this might be due to different trends in demographics, as well as to differences in structural reforms undertaken in the past. Thirdly, the degree of synchronisation of business cycles across the euro area countries seems to have increased since the beginning of the 1990s. This finding holds for various measures of synchronisation applied to overall activity and to the cyclical component, for annual and quarterly data, as well as for various country groupings. In particular, the degree of correlation currently appears to be at a historical high. In addition to these main findings, certain other stylised facts on dispersion and synchronisation are presented.
- JEL Code
- C10 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General→General
E32 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Business Fluctuations, Cycles
O40 : Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth→Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity→General
- 22 July 2004
- WORKING PAPER SERIES - No. 374Details
- Abstract
- In this paper we investigate whether the forecast of the HICP components (indirect approach) improves upon the forecast of overall HICP (direct approach) and whether the aggregation of country forecasts improves upon the forecast of the euro-area as a whole, considering the four largest euro area countries. The direct approach provides clearly better results than the indirect approach for 12 and 18 steps ahead for the overall HICP, while for shorter horizons the results are mixed. For the euro area HICP excluding unprocessed food and energy(HICPX), the indirect forecast outperforms the direct whereas the differences are only marginal for the countries. The aggregation of country forecasts does not seem to improve upon the forecast of the euro area HICP and HICPX. This result has however to be taken with caution as differences appear to be rather small and due to the limited country coverage.
- JEL Code
- C11 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General→Bayesian Analysis: General
C32 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models, Multiple Variables→Time-Series Models, Dynamic Quantile Regressions, Dynamic Treatment Effect Models, Diffusion Processes
C53 : Mathematical and Quantitative Methods→Econometric Modeling→Forecasting and Prediction Methods, Simulation Methods
E31 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Price Level, Inflation, Deflation
E37 : Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics→Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles→Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications