Economic government: What kind of coordination for the Eurozone. Bertelsmann Stiftung EUROPA Briefing 2017

How are decisions made in the euro area? And how democratic are they? These questions moved to the centre of the debate during the euro crisis. Under tremendous time pressure, solutions had to be found for stabilising the euro. New institutions and rules were created such as the European Stability Mechanism, the Banking Union and the Fiscal Compact. Who makes the decisions in the Eurozone today? Is there a democratic deficit? Does the currency union need better control mechanisms – or are the old ones good enough

The Role of the Emerging Countries in the G20: Agenda-setter, Veto Player or Spectator? Bruges Regional Integration & Global Governance Paper 2/2011

In 2008, the G20 convened for the first time at leaders’ level, making emerging countries such as China, India and Brazil permanent members of an informal gathering at the highest political level. The aim of this paper is to refine previous assessments on the role of these emerging countries in the new G20. We first analyse the preferences of the United States and European members as a proxy for G8 positions and then juxtapose them with the preferences of China, India and Brazil as representatives of the emerging countries within the G20. We find that the latter share in particular the concern for more voice in global economic governance but – due to often heterogeneous preferences – do not generally act as a bloc. Moreover, by comparing their preferences with G20 outcomes, the paper investigates to what extent the emerging countries have agenda-setting or veto power, or whether they are taking a back-seat role among the G20 countries. We show that they are not mere spectators but have a certain agenda-setting power, especially when they are able to forge coalitions or hold the presidency

Beyond Heiligendamm: the G-8 and its dialogue with emerging countries

"While holding the G-8 presidency in 2007, one of Germany's main objectives has been to improve cooperation with emerging countries. The Heiligendamm summit launched a two-year process to give dialogue with China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Mexico on a more structured and long-term basis without enlarging the G-8 itself." (author's abstract

Germany’s Current Account and Trade Surpluses A Technical Debate Enters the Geopolitical Limelight. Bertelsmann Stiftung GED Study April 2018

During the past decade, macroeconomic imbalances – typified by countries’ surplus or deficit of exports, currency, or capital – have moved to the fore of international economic policy debates. Global events and developments, such as China’s integration into the world economy, the 2008 financial crisis, and the Eurozone crisis, have created, and in some cases, compounded longstanding trade and investment asymmetries around the world. These imbalances have no single cause, but are fostered and magnified by the competitiveness of a country’s industries, domestic demand, corporate investment decisions, and tax and monetary policy, among other factors. In recent years, the widening gaps in countries’ trade relationships have become highly politicized, prompting policymakers to respond with measures ranging from formalized monitoring to punitive tariffs

Flashlight Europe N°7–09 July 2015. Greece After the Referendum: Three Possible Scenarios for the Euro Area

About ten days ago Alexis Tsipras, the Greek prime minister, announced that there was going to be a referendum, and thus terminated the negotiations on a new rescue package unilaterally. Since then the euro area has been plunged into a wholly unprecedented political crisis. Whether or not Greece can re-main in the monetary union is more uncertain than ever, and decisions that can give a new twist to the political and financial situation are being made almost every day. The Greek banks have been closed for over a week. The economic data are deteriorating rapidly. And yet a solution is nowhere to be seen. The No vote in the Greek referendum has not exactly improved the chances of reaching an agree-ment. For the time being the positions seem to have become uncompromising. At the summit of the heads of state and government on 7 July the Greek government was given five days and a “final deadline” in order to come up with viable proposals for reform. Thus the next few days are of crucial im-portance. At the weekend the heads of state and government of all 28 EU member states are going to meet in order to decide the future of Greece. This flashlight europe provides an overview of the events of the last few days, outlines possible scenarios for what may happen in the near future, and identifies factors which may exert an influence in the short term. We are not trying to give an exact forecast or to formulate action recommendations. But we are trying to shed some light on a confusing situation by identifying important patterns and some of the salient factors

spotlight europe #2015/04—October 2015: A Fiscal Union for Europe – Building Block and Not a Magic Bullet

The dramatic negotiations with Greece in the past few months have been a telling reminder of the weaknesses of the euro area. Most of the commentators are of the opinion that if the monetary union is going to be crisis-resistant and stable in the long term, certain very important elements will have to be changed. However, there is little or no agreement when it comes to specifying the "what" and the "how". In particular there are heated debates about the right steps to further integration in the area of fiscal policy. "Fiscal union can create stability only if it includes both credible budgetary rules and some kind of risk sharing", argue Katharina Gnath and Jörg Haas in the latest spotlight europe. However, "whilst it is an important and effective way of stabilizing the euro area, it should not exclude the use of other instruments.

Flashlight Europe N°6–June 2015. Waiting for the Five Presidents’ Report on the Future of the Monetary Union: What do we need to know?

At the European Summit on 25-26 June Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, will be presenting a report on the future of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). It has been drawn up by the presidents of the EU Commission, the European Council, the European Central Bank, the European Parliament, and the Eurogroup, and is a sequel to the “Four Presidents’ Report” on the same topic that was compiled without the participation of the President of the European Parliament and presented in 2012. In this Flashlight we provide answers to key questions about the forthcoming report

spotlight europe #2015/03 — August 2015: Money or Democracy? Greece and the Euro Dilemma

The negotiations on the third bailout package for Greece are still going on, but the euro area has already paid a high price for it. The compromise on which it is based is clearly very controversial. Some of its critics believe that it does not make sense in economic terms, whereas others point out that it may have an adverse political effect. But what in fact is Greece actually supposed to be doing, and what does all this mean with regard to sovereignty and democracy

Die unbekannte Macht der Staatsfonds: Protektionismus ist die falsche Erwiderung

"Der Schutz einheimischer Industrien vor ausländischen Staatsfonds ist nur dann gerechtfertigt, wenn die nationale Sicherheit und direkte Daseinsvorsorge betroffen sind – industrie- oder standortpolitische Gründe reichen hierfür nicht aus. Eine generelle Abwehrhaltung gegenüber internationalem Staatskapital schadet Deutschland langfristig. Dennoch sollte sich die deutsche Regierung weiterhin auf europäischer und internationaler Ebene für mehr Transparenz von Staatsfonds und anderen Finanzakteuren einsetzen, um deren Aktivitäten und Risiken besser bewerten zu können." (Autorenreferat

Mehr Einbeziehung: Ja, Erweiterung: Nein: die G-8 und der Dialog mit den Schwellenländern

"Eine entscheidende Herausforderung der G-8 sieht die Bundesregierung in dem richtigen Umgang mit den großen Schwellenländern. Hierbei setzt sie auf eine Intensivierung des Dialogs im Rahmen des 'Out-reach'. Dies ist ein Schritt in die richtige Richtung, doch über Heiligendamm hinaus müssen langfristige Kooperationsstrukturen geschaffen werden." (Autorenreferat