Costs of EMU from a regional approach: the Spanish case

In this paper we look at the impact of EMU on Spanish regional disparities in the framework of the Optimal Currency Areas theory and upon its distinction between benefits and costs of a monetary integration. In particular, here we want to deal with the main potential source of costs for the Spanish regions: the likelihood of asymmetric shocks in the economy. In this regard, we try to ascertain the degree of correlation among the business cycles of the Spanish regions, and also with respect to the European and Spanish cycle. The technique employed in the paper ( following Peiro, 2000) focuses on the cross correlations among relevant variables at the regional and the national level such as the behaviour of industrial production or the rate of inflation. We proceed in two steps. First we filter the series in order to get non-autocorrelated residuals. Next we compute the asymptotic distribution of the contemporaneus correlation among the variables in order to know to which extent business cycles behave according to a similar pattern. This method will shed some light on the question about the degree of comovements in the cycles. If the comovements seem to be high - as we expect, based upon other results -, then we may consider than the probability of the Spanish regions suffering asymmetric shocks is less severe.

EMU and macroeconomic shocks: some evidence on Spanish regions

According to the Theory of Optimal Currency Areas, one of the main costs that EMU may entail for countries and regions belonging in it is the loss of monetary autonomy at the country level. In fact, the scenario brought about by the single currency does not allow for domestic policy adjustments (i.e a change in the exchange rate or a specific monetary measure) in response to shocks. The importance of this cost, in turn, is related to the nature of shocks impinging over the different countries and regions that encompass the eurozone. If the probability that countries and regions suffer the same sort of shock is large, then a common policy designed by the ECB will have beneficial effects on the whole eurozone. Instead, if regions or countries are likely to be exposed to different kinds of shocks, then the common monetary policy will benefit some areas in detriment of others. To address this issue empirically, this paper focuses in the analysis of the shocks that have hit the Spanish regions in the recent past. In particular, we want to identify the kind of shocks that have been suffered by the Spanish regions in the last decades, distinguishing several categories: symmetric versus asymmetric, persistent versus transitory and demand shocks versus supply shocks. By symmetric shocks we understand those that have similar impact on all regions. Permanent shocks are those characterised by side effects that do not vanish in the short run. An example of a demand shock is a change in consumers' preferences, whereas a supply shock is typically a modification in the price of a raw material. We examine the behaviour of GAV and prices for 17 Spanish regions over the period 1955-97. In particular, we write a baseline model in the form of the state-of-spaces, in order to be able to apply the Kalman filter. Main conclusions are as follows: first, and employing the assumption that common shocks are tantamount to symmetric shocks, it seems that, in most cases, the shocks that have affected the Spanish regions have been mostly symmetric, while asymmetric shocks have been more sparse. Second, empirical results suggest that the effects of these shocks have been, generally speaking, persistent rather than transitory. Finally, the estimation suggests that supply shocks have been slightly more frequent that demand shocks. The policy implications of these results are that the lack of monetary autonomy and the loss of the exchange rate as adjustment mechanisms may not be very onerous. The common monetary policy implemented by the ECB will probably have similar effects on all Spanish regions. Therefore, the danger of an increase in regional disparities via this channel do not seem to be very severe.

La política monetaria del Banco Central Europeo y la Regla de Taylor, 1999-2009

El principal objetivo de este artículo es averiguar si existe un modelo que describa la política monetaria del BCE de una forma simple e intuitiva, así como si ese modelo es constante en el tiempo. Un primer resultado relevante es que existe dicho modelo y que, de hecho, la política monetaria del BCE en la última década puede ser descrita por una regla de Taylor aunque con una salvedad: el modelo se ajusta convenientemente para dos subperiodos, 1999-2002 y 2007-2009, pero el ajuste no se alcanza para el subperiodo 2003-2006. Además, los parámetros que describen la regla de Taylor son bastante estables en el tiempo, aunque el peso relativo del output es mayor en el subperiodo 2007-2009 que en 1999-2002. A continuación, se calculan los tipos de interés óptimos para algunos países representativos y, especialmente en el primero de los subperíodos y para un conjunto de países que no pertenecen al núcleo de la Eurozona, se constata la existencia de algunas diferencias significativas entre sus tipos de interés óptimos y el tipo de interés establecido por el BCE

Bronchoscopist's perception of the quality of the single-use bronchoscope (Ambu aScope4™) in selected bronchoscopies: a multicenter study in 21 Spanish pulmonology services

Background: The disposable bronchoscope is an excellent alternative to face the problem of SARS-CoV-2 and other cross infections, but the bronchoscopist’s perception of its quality has not been evaluated. Methods: To evaluate the quality of the Ambu-aScope4 disposable bronchoscope, we carried out a cross-sectional study in 21 Spanish pulmonology services. We use a standardized questionnaire completed by the bronchoscopists at the end of each bronchoscopy. The variables were described with absolute and relative frequencies, measures of cen‑ tral tendency and dispersion depending on their nature. The existence of learning curves was evaluated by CUSUM analysis. Results: The most frequent indications in 300 included bronchoscopies was bronchial aspiration in 69.3% and the median duration of these was 9.1 min. The route of entry was nasal in 47.2% and oral in 34.1%. The average score for ease of use, image, and aspiration quality was 80/100. All the planned techniques were performed in 94.9% and the bronchoscopist was satisfed in 96.6% of the bronchoscopies. They highlighted the portability and immediacy of the aScope4TM to start the procedure in 99.3%, the possibility of taking and storing images in 99.3%. The CUSUM analysis showed average scores>70/100 from the frst procedure and from the 9th procedure more than 80% of the scores exceeded the 80/100 score

Bronchoscopist's perception of the quality of the single-use bronchoscope (Ambu aScope4™) in selected bronchoscopies : a multicenter study in 21 Spanish pulmonology services

Background: The disposable bronchoscope is an excellent alternative to face the problem of SARS-CoV-2 and other cross infections, but the bronchoscopist's perception of its quality has not been evaluated. Methods: To evaluate the quality of the Ambu-aScope4 disposable bronchoscope, we carried out a cross-sectional study in 21 Spanish pulmonology services. We use a standardized questionnaire completed by the bronchoscopists at the end of each bronchoscopy. The variables were described with absolute and relative frequencies, measures of central tendency and dispersion depending on their nature. The existence of learning curves was evaluated by CUSUM analysis. Results: The most frequent indications in 300 included bronchoscopies was bronchial aspiration in 69.3% and the median duration of these was 9.1 min. The route of entry was nasal in 47.2% and oral in 34.1%. The average score for ease of use, image, and aspiration quality was 80/100. All the planned techniques were performed in 94.9% and the bronchoscopist was satisfied in 96.6% of the bronchoscopies. They highlighted the portability and immediacy of the aScope4TM to start the procedure in 99.3%, the possibility of taking and storing images in 99.3%. The CUSUM analysis showed average scores > 70/100 from the first procedure and from the 9th procedure more than 80% of the scores exceeded the 80/100 score. Conclusions: The aScope4™ scored well for ease of use, imaging, and aspiration. We found a learning curve with excellent scores from the 9th procedure. Bronchoscopists highlighted its portability, immediacy of use and the possibility of taking and storing images

Macroeconomic stability and economic growth: the case of Spain

Recent contributions have pointed out to a beneficial effect of macroeconomic stability and market liberalization on economic growth. This paper analyses this issue empirically by means of cointegration techniques, using annual data from the Spanish economy, 1962-95. Some proxies of macroeconomic instability - such as inflation, public deficit and various types of public expenditure as a share of GDP - and market distortions are included in the equations as regressors. The results show a negative correlation of these proxies and economic growth. Therefore, the Spanish experience suggests that macroeconomic stability and market liberalization are prerequisites for economic growth.

Does equality reduce growth? Some empirical evidence

This study intends to provide some empirical evidence on the connection between equality and growth. Accordingly, two different samples of countries have been explored over the last three decades using panel data. In the first subsample, encompassed by medium income nations, the relationship between equality (proxied by the Gini index) and growth seems to be hump shaped. In the second subsample, made up by high-income countries, the connection is unambiguously negative - more equality is detrimental for growth. These results suggest that the impact of equality on growth may be different at the various stages of development.