Spatial decisions of multinational enterprises and their effect on local firms

Since the 1980s empirical research has been conducted on the influence of MNEs on local firms. The spillovers predicted by growth theory models used in the research designs have not been found. The main result is the importance of increased competition for the productivity of local firms. When FDI flows expanded rapidly in the 1990s, it became clear that MNEs play an important role in international technology transfer. However, growth theory models are limited in that market structures and firms cannot be modeled explicitly. The New Economic Geography (NEG) is better equipped to handle these issues. Instead of spillovers it relies on linkages. Therefore, new insights might be gained by basing empirical research on a NEG model and looking for linkages among firms. --New Economic Geography,Foreign Direct Investment,Multinational Enterprises

Liquidity, insolvency and the state

The importance of liquidity and insolvency for nation states and banks has been highlighted by current economic woes in the eurozone and elsewhere. The concepts are grounded in monetary theory, which determine the way they are interpreted. Connected to the discussion of autometallism and Chartalism in the early 20th century, monetary economists of today have come full circle. Discussing some modern authors, it is argued that the concepts of liquidity and insolvency are connected. However, if the central bank functions as lender of last resort the link is cut. Also, fiscal policy has the potential to remove problems of illiquidity and insolvency in the financial system. Illiquidity and insolvency are signals of stress in the real economy. Their oppression through central bank policy might lead to the (wrong) perception that all is well in the economy

The job guarantee: full employment, price stability and social progress

This paper presents the idea of the Job Guarantee (JG), which is a logical extension of the paradigm of a tax-driven fiat currency. The JG involves the government offering a public purpose-oriented job with a fixed hourly wage and job benefits to anyone willing to work. The JG as a bottom-up approach is locally administered but federally funded. As the analytical lens of MMT reveals, a monetarily sovereign government is always able to provide the spending required. Macroeconomically, the JG works as an automatic countercyclical stabilizer and an excellent tool for aggregated demand management, ensuring the economy is continuously operating at full capacity. On top, the JG uses an employed buffer stock approach as a superior means to maintain price stability. Next to its favourable macroeconomic impacts, the JG offers many social benefits, particularly related to continuous employment, working conditions in the private sector, power relations in the labour market and democracy. While the JG and Universal Basic Income (UBI) are often discussed as comparable, competing policy proposals, the JG addresses more macroeconomic and social issues than the UBI does. This paper concludes that the JG qualifies for being the single most effective policy in order to drive the economy towards continuous full employment and price stability while realizing additional social benefits

Completing the Euro: The Euro Treasury and the Job Guarantee

The problems with the design of the Eurozone came into focus when, late in 2009, several member nations – notably Greece – failed to refinance their government debt. The crisis that followed was not entirely a surprise. When the Euro was launched in 1999, many economists warned that the single currency was unworkable. Even Eurozone optimists argued that the Euro project would eventually need to be completed. More than 10 years after the crisis, unemployment rates remain elevated and continuing to threaten the social, political and economic stability of the Eurozone. The institutional constraints of the single currency however preclude bold action to address these challenges. In this paper, we suggest that tackling the twin problems of the Eurozone – its institutional flaws and mass unemployment – could be addressed by creating a Euro Treasury that would finance a Job Guarantee program, which would eliminate mass unemployment, enhance price stability, and foster social and economic integration across Europe.The problems with the design of the Eurozone came into focus when, late in 2009, several member nations – notably Greece – failed to refinance their government debt. The crisis that followed was not entirely a surprise. When the Euro was launched in 1999, many economists warned that the single currency was unworkable. Even Eurozone optimists argued that the Euro project would eventually need to be completed. More than 10 years after the crisis, unemployment rates remain elevated and continuing to threaten the social, political and economic stability of the Eurozone. The institutional constraints of the single currency however preclude bold action to address these challenges. In this paper, we suggest that tackling the twin problems of the Eurozone – its institutional flaws and mass unemployment – could be addressed by creating a Euro Treasury that would finance a Job Guarantee program, which would eliminate mass unemployment, enhance price stability, and foster social and economic integration across Europe

Knapp's 'State Theory of Money' and its reception in German academic discourse

In 1905, Georg Friedrich Knapp published The State Theory of Money in his native German, claiming that money is a "creature of law" and not connected to metals via some intrinsic value. When the English translation appeared in 1924, apparently at the wishes of John Maynard Keynes, the German version had run through four editions, upon which the last the translation builds. There also had been considerable debate about "Chartalism" - the idea that money derived its acceptance by legal means - in the German academic literature. Among others, Knut Wicksell and Georg Simmel commented on it. Since so far there has not been any English-language publication on this issue, it is deemed worthwhile to provide such. After presenting the main arguments that Knapp makes in his book, the academic reviews that followed are presented and evaluated

Comment on Edlin and Jaffee: Show Me the General Theory

Aaron Edlin and Dwight Jaffee point to a problem straight out of Keynes, according to Dirk Ehnts, so why not look to Keynes for the answer?

The fiscal-monetary nexus in Germany

In this paper, the focus lies on the way the German government spends, how it spends and what the connection between finance ministry and central bank is. The institutions involved in the process are identified and discussed. As a member of the Eurozone, Germany's national central bank is not allowed to buy sovereign securities on its own account. The German government uses taxes and revenues from sovereign security issues to finance its spending, continuing the institutional framework that existed during the era of the deutsch mark. This description confirms the idea that 'the state spends first' also in the Eurozone and that it makes sense to consolidate central bank and government(s) even when a government is not issuing a sovereign currency