1,721,164 research outputs found
Growth and crisis in transition : a comparative perspective
Full text linkThe paper provides an empirical analysis of the growth performance of transition countries in a comparative perspective, separating episodes of crises from those of growth. Performance is measured by the output response following recessions, rather than average rates of growth that aggregate periods of recessions and periods of growth. Results highlight significant differences between transition and non-transition countries, and heterogeneity within the transition group. Distinguishing the performance following the so-called "transitional recession" from that of "normal recessions", the analysis allows separating the role of initial conditions, pre-transition, from the effects determined by the economic structure that emerged after the launch of market reforms. The post-recession behavior of output in Central-Eastern Europe resembles that of emerging and developing countries in the aftermath of banking and financial crises, often following significant liberalizations. In contrast, the post-crisis performance of CIS countries resembles the output response observed during episodes of civil wars, and remains significantly different from the normal response of an average market country. Therefore, the ability to rebound after a crisis is a key element of the growth performance of different transition countries. Furthermore, we distinguish three components of the growth performance associated to a crisis, namely the capacity to rebound, the depth and the lenght of the crisis. We observe that such performance depends on economic reforms and especially on the complementarities among different reforms.Recessions, crises, reform complementarities, transition.
Crisis, Credit and Resource Misallocation: Evidence from Europe during the Great Recession
Full text linkThe chapters in this eBook analyse the behaviour of bank credit in Europe during the Great Recession and the subsequent recovery, drawing on research presented at the first conference of the European Central Banking Network (ECBN) held in Ljubljana in September 2015
Growth in Transition: What We Know, What We Don't, and What We Should
Full text linkThis essay surveys macroeconomic issues that marked the transition from centrally planned to market economy in Central and Eastern European and former Soviet Union countries. We first establish a set of stylized facts of the transition so far, namely: (1) output fell, (2) capital shrank, (3) labor moved, (4) trade reoriented, (5) the structure changed, (6) institutions collapsed, and (7) transition costs. We then critically survey the theoretical literature on transition, discussing various explanations for the initial output fall as well as medium term issues, such as optimal speed of transition, disorganization, institutions and sectoral reallocation as a source of output dynamics. Last, we review the empirical literature to assess how well it translates the theoretical models and explains the stylized facts. The essay concludes with a succinct list of suggestions for future research.Economic Growth, Transition Economies
PRICE SETTING AND MARKET STRUCTURE: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF MICRO DATA
Full text linkMost empirical studies on price setting that use micro data focus on advanced industrial countries. In this paper we analyze the experience of an emerging economy, Slovakia, using a large micro-level dataset that accounts for a substantial part of the consumer price index (about 5 million observations). We find that market structure is an important determinant of pricing behavior. The effect of market structure on persistence of inflation results from two conflicting forces. Increased competition may reduce persistence by increasing the frequency of price changes. In contrast, higher competition may increase persistence through inertial behaviour induced by the strategic complementarity among price setters. In our case study, we find that the latter effects dominate. Indeed, the dispersion of prices is higher while persistence is lower in the non-tradable sectors, suggesting that higher competition is not conducive to lower persistence. Furthermore, we find that the frequency of price changes depends negatively on the price dispersion and positively on the product-specific inflation. These results seem consistent with predictions of Calvo’s staggered price model.price setting, market structure, emerging markets
Economic Growth in Georgia: Historical Perspectives and Prognosis
Full text linkWhile output declined in virtually all transition economies in the initial years, the speed and extent of the recovery that followed has varied widely across these countries. The paper examines some aspects of transition experiences of 1990s and dynamics of GDP in Georgia during transition recession and following post-recession recovery. Economic growth is considered as complex and comprehensive phenomenon. The prognostic econometric model of Georgian GDP is developed.economic growth, GDP, transitional economy, Georgia, prognostic model, regression, non –linear trend
The Impact of Social and Tax Policies on Families with Children: Comparative Study of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia
Full text linkThe paper compares the impact of government measures focused on families with children in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. The ageing of population and the decline in fertility rates will in future importantly influence economic as well as social environment in the European countries. One of the responses on declining fertility rates is the promotion of demographic renewal in Europe through various kinds of policy measures ranging from better availability of quality provisions for combining child care and work, child care facilities and family support. We focus on the overall financial impact of governmental policies on families with children in the four examined countries. The paper evaluates impact of government subsidies and tax systems in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia on the net income of families with children compared to the childless couples.family policy, income taxation, subsidies, fertility
Aspects of Fiscal Performance in Some Transition Economies Under Fund-Supported Programs
Full text linkThis paper contains a selective review of some of the key fiscal issues faced by transition economies. The twelve countries that provide the empirical background for this study have all been under Fund programs for at least some of the time since they initiated their transitions from plan to market. The focus of the paper is on medium- and longer-term fiscal issues, such as government solvency and the evaluation of the sustainability of the government's fiscal-financial-monetary program. The purpose of the paper is to assist the design and implementation of the future Fund programs and to improve the quality of the debate about the design and conduct of fiscal policy in transition economic generally. The outline of the paper is as follows. Following the introduction, which contains a brief discussion of the roles of the Fund, Section 2 sets out a framework for evaluating the sustainability if the fiscal -financial-monetary program of the state. Section 3 contains some numerical material on public debt, deficits (including quasi-fiscal deficits) and monetary financing or seigniorage. Section 4 discusses eight specific budgetary issues I consider to be of special relevance to transition economics. Section 5 concludes by summarising the lessons from this study in a number of propositions.
Supply side mechanisms in transition
No full textDefence date: 16 February 2006Examining board: Prof. Giuseppe Bertola, Università di Torino, supervisor ; Prof. Fabrizio Coricelli, Università di Siena ; Prof. Jozef Konings, Catholic University of Leuven ; Prof. Omar Licandro, EUIPDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 201
Industrial reforms in China: State-owned enterprises between output growth and profitability decline
Full text linkSoft budget constraints: An institutional interpretation of stylised facts in economic transformation in Central Eastern Europe
Full text linkAmong the stylised facts of economic transformation in East Central Europe are the following unpleasant developments-: the reemergence of fiscal deficits, the resilliance of medium inflation, and sluggish output recovery. This paper reviews the major interpretations found in the literature, including structuralist and demand-led approaches, and argues specifically against macroeconomic policy reversal. The concept of soft budget constraints for the state owned enterprise sector is used to develop an institutional interpretation of macroeconomic imbalances in the transformation process. Appropriate indicators of budget softness are derived and applied to the Polish evidence. The results support the hypothesis that current macroeconomic policy concerns are related to the continuing tolerance of loss making firms.The causes of soft budget constraints are found in perverse incentives in the financial sector, unclarified ownership rights, and the political reluctance to face large scale unemployment. A strict enforcement of bankruptcy is urged as a precondition for successful structural transformation.
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