CEEOL - Search Result

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№261. Time for a Common European Effort on Raw Materials

Author(s): Roderick Kefferpütz / Language(s): English

Keywords: Raw materials; Rare earths; Prices; Trading policies; EU;

At long last commodity prices have declined from their pre-summer highs. Many raw materials are now trading at significantly lower prices, giving temporary respite to industry. Red-hot copper, the bell wether of the metals sector, for example, has pulled back from its peak of $10,000 a tonne. Even the astronomical rise of the previously little-known rare earth elements has reversed.

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№262. Sector-specific Activities as the Driving Force towards a Low-Carbon Economy. From the Asia-Pacific Partnership to a Global Partnership

Author(s): Noriko Fujiwara / Language(s): English

Keywords: Low-Carbon Economy; Asia-Pacific partnership; Global partnership; energy efficiency; environmental performance;

From 2006 to 2011, the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP) provided a non-legally binding framework based on a public–private partnership to support projects towards clean development and climate objectives in seven countries in the region. Three of the eight sectoral APP task forces (on power generation and transmission, cement and steel) are to continue their activities under the Global Superior Energy Performance partnership (GSEP), with a stronger focus on energy efficiency and environmental performance, and participation expanded to the global scale. This decision was based on the official view that the APP activities were successful and could lead to other successes in similar initiatives with similar working formats.

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№263. Stepping up Growth Policies

Author(s): Stefano Micossi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Eurozone; GDP; IMF; Economic activity;

The eurozone is in recession and will show negative growth in 2012; GDP will fall sharply in Greece and Portugal, and there is substantial risk that Spain and Italy will follow suit (the Commission’s recent forecasts seem overly optimistic and complacent; the IMF is more downbeat). But fiscal policies are uniformly restrictive throughout the eurozone and much of the Union, and the hopes that fiscal consolidation could spur growth by improving household and business confidence are not materialising. In reality, domestic demand has been hit too hard by fiscal consolidation, and investment throughout the Union remains well below pre-crisis levels.

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№270. How to Negotiate under Co-decision in the EU. Reforming Trilogues and First-Reading Agreements

Author(s): Christine Reh,Lukas Obholzer / Language(s): English

Keywords: EU; First-Reading Agreements; Constitutional Affairs Committee; European Parliament;

The Constitutional Affairs Committee is currently reviewing the European Parliament’s Rules of Procedure to increase the effectiveness, transparency and inclusiveness of first-reading agreements under co-decision. This CEPS Policy Brief takes a stand as to which rules should be adopted to achieve these objectives. Given the steep rise of early agreements and Parliament’s role as a guarantor of EU legitimacy, we place a premium on inclusiveness and transparency.

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№271. Europe’s Recurrent Employment Problems

Author(s): Daniel Gros / Language(s): English

Keywords: Europe’s Recurrent Employment Problems; Unemployment; EU; Youth unemployment;

As the euro crisis continues andunemployment climbs to new heights,the clamour calling for Europe to ‘do something’ is getting louder. But the real questionis: can Europe, or rather the EU, do ‘something’ that would actually have a real impact on unemployment? In other words, does a European plan or employment strategy make sense?

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№272. ‘Grexit’: Who would pay for it?

Author(s): Daniel Gros,Alessandro Giovannini,Ciniza Alcidi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Grexit; Greece; Eurozone; Financial markets; Government; Foreign Creditors;

What would be the cost if Greece wereto exit from the eurozone? This much debated question cannot be answered with a single number. The consequences of Greece’s exit would depend decisively on the exact circumstances of events in the country it self as well as the general state of financial markets in the eurozone.

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№273. Moving the EU from a Laggard to a Leader in Democracy Assistance: The Potential Role of the European Endowment for Democracy

Author(s): Magdalena Nasieniak,Hrant Kostanyan / Language(s): English

Keywords: EU; Democracy assistance; Mobilising additional funding; Budget;

The EU has consistently stressed the primacy of democracy assistance in its pronouncements on EU external policy, but its actions have noticeably lagged behind. At the heart of the problem are the absence of available appropriate instruments, incoherent external action and convoluted decision-making procedures that require the mobilisation of unanimity and the political backing of all 27 EU member states. The Arab Spring once again highlighted the EU’s inability to react swiftly and decisively to the extraordinary events unfolding in its neighbourhood.

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№275. Implementing Basel III in Europe: Diagnosis and avenues for improvement

Author(s): Rym Ayadi,Emrah Arbak,Willem Pieter DE GROEN / Language(s): English

Keywords: Basel III; Europe; Financial institutions;

Adopted by the European Commission inJuly 2011, the proposed Capita lRequirements Directive and Regulation(CRD IV-CRR) translate into EU law the Basel III standards adopted by the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision (BCBS). Among other things,the proposal increases the quality and quantity ofthe minimum capital; introduces new rules on liquidity, leverage ratios, counter-cyclical buffers and systemically important financial institutions; and amends the definitions of counter party credit risk and rules for the banking book.

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№276. Pre-empting Technical Barriers in the Single Market

Author(s): Jacques Pelkmans,Anabela Correia de Brito / Language(s): English

Keywords: Single Market; regulatory barriers; EU Countries;

Effective enforcement and compliance with EU law is not just a legal necessity, it is also of economic interest since the potential of the Single Market will be fully exploited. Enforcement barriers generate unjustified costs and hindrancesor uncertainty for cross-border business and might deprive consumers from receiving the full benefit of greater choice and/or cheaper offers.

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№277. Unholy compromise in the eurozone and how to right it

Author(s): Stefano Micossi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Eurozone; Monetary union; Financial markets; Foreign claims of German banks; General government debt and deficit;

Two years after the first Greek rescue in May 2010, crisis management in the eurozone has still failed to restore confidence. A vivid picture of the situation can be found in Figure 1: the constellation of spreads on ten-year sovereign debts over the Bund in the eurozone is wider thanit was before monetary union, as though financial markets had already discounted its breakdown. Temporary respites, notably in the early part of 2012, have not interrupted the trend of increasing divergence that risks undermining the credibility of adjustment efforts under way.

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№279. Can Italy and Spain survive rates of 6-7%?

Author(s): Daniel Gros / Language(s): English

Keywords: Italy; Spain; European Central Bank; Fiscal problems; Government;

The sentiment that the euro is now in real danger is based in large part on the wide spread conviction that interest rates of 6-7% are simply unsustainable for both Italy and Spain. However, a closer look at the fundamentals suggests that both countries should be able to live with this level of interest rate for quite some time,but only if they mobilize domestic savings, which remain strong in both countries. For Spain, in addition, some debt/equity swaps are needed.

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№280. A Sovereign Wealth Fund to Lift Germany’s Curse of Excess Savings

Author(s): Thomas Mayer,Daniel Gros / Language(s): English

Keywords: Sovereign Wealth Fund; Germany; Savings; exchange rate risk; GDP;

We suggest in this paper that the risk-adjusted rate of return on German savings could be improved by creating a sovereign wealth fund for Germany (designated DESWF), which couldinvest excess German savings globally. Creation of a DESWF should of course complement—and not substitute—for policies helping current account adjustment and funding through private sector capital flows.

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№281. The EU’s Promotion of External Democracy: In search of the plot

Author(s): Jan Orbie,Anne Wetzel / Language(s): English

Keywords: EU; External Democracy; European Endowment of Democracy;

While the EU has recently upgraded its external democracy promotion policies through a set of initiatives such as the “Partnership for Democracy and Shared Prosperity with the Southern Mediterranean”, the proposal for a “European Endowment of Democracy”, and the “Strategic Framework and Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy”, there is one challenge that it has not yet addressed: what exactly does it aim to support? This policy brief illustrates that both the conceptualisation of democracy and the means to achieve it remain vague, and explains why this is problematic. It points out the risks that stem from a lack of clear understanding about how human rights, governance, civil society and socio-economic development relate to democratisation. It concludes that the EU should reflect on the substance of its external democracy promotion policies and conceptualise the relationship between the different elements of democracy promotion cited above and democratisation.

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№282. Banking Union: A federal model for the European Union with prompt corrective action

Author(s): Stefano Micossi,Carmine Di Noia,Jacopo Carmassi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Banking Union; European Union; federal model; administration of the insurance fund;

The European Commission has published its proposals for the transfer of supervisory responsibilities to the European Central Bank (ECB), under Article 127(6) of the TFEU, providing a comprehensive and courageous ‘first step’towards a European banking Union, the other steps being European deposit insurance and resolution procedures. However, on a number of issues the Commission’s chosen path raises questions thats hould be brought out in the open and fully recognized before final deliberation by the Council.

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№283. A European Deposit Insurance and Resolution Fund - An Update

Author(s): Daniel Gros,Dirk Schoenmaker / Language(s): English

Keywords: European Deposit Insurance and Resolution Fund; Cross-border banks; national sovereign;

Cross-border banking is currently not stable in Europe. Cross-border banks need a European safety net. Moreover, a truly integrated Europeanl evel banking system may help to break the diabolical loop between the solvency of the domestic banking system and the fiscal standing of the national sovereign.

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№284. Unleashing Competition in EU Business Services

Author(s): Henk L.M. Kox / Language(s): English

Keywords: EU Business Services; EU member states; European Commission’s Europe-2020 strategy; Single European Market;

In most EU member states, the business services industry has booked no productivity growth during the last two decades. The industry's performance in the other member states was weaker than that of its US counterparts.

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№289. Banking Union with a Sovereign Virus. The self-serving regulatory treatment of sovereign debt in the euro area

Author(s): Daniel Gros / Language(s): English

Keywords: Banking Union; Sovereign virus; Self-serving regulation; sovereign debt; Euro area;

The purpose of the purposed banking union is to de-link banks from their sovereigns. The 'Single Supervisory Mechanism' (SSM) should correct the tendency of national supervisors to overlook problems at home.

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№290. A Copernican Turn for Banking Union

Author(s): Thomas Mayer / Language(s): English

Keywords: Banking Union; Safe deposits; reserve requirements; Bank liabilities;

At every meeting of central bankers, policy-makers and economists, there seems to be agreement that creation of a ‘Banking Union’ is essential for the survival of the euro. Yet, progress in building this union is painfully slow. The Single Supervisory Mechanism may not be ready before the middle of next year, the Single Resolution Mechanism may require a laborious change of the EU Treaty and common deposit insurance has been postponed into the in definite future.

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№291. A Viable Alternative to Basel III Prudential Capital Rules

Author(s): Stefano Micossi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Basel III; Capital rules; EU; USA; Financial system; Liquidity Coverage; Net Stable funding ratios;

There is something surreal in the implementation process of the new Basel capital framework for banks, known as Basel III, in the two key jurisdictions of the European Union and the United States (see BCBS, 2013b, for the latest official update by Basel Supervisors).

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№292. E3+3 coercive diplomacy towards Iran: Do the economic sanctions add up?

Author(s): Stefan Waizer,Steven Blockmans / Language(s): English

Keywords: International relations; Iran; economic sanctions;

Uncertainty about the peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear programme still poses a major challenge to the international community, and to the Middle East in particular. More than ten years of negotiations have brought no resolution to the dispute, so in recent years the EU and the US have upped the pressure on the Islamic Republic. In January 2012 the EU adopted an unprecedented sanctions package, mainly directed at the Iranian oil industry. Together with US measures, this strike at the centre piece of the Iranian economy was intended to force the Iranian regime to agree to demands of the international community in the framework of the ‘E3+3’ (Germany, France, the UK, plus the US, China and Russia) negotiations, conducted under the auspices of EU High Representative, Catherine Ashton.

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Series:CEPS Policy Briefs

№261. Time for a Common European Effort on Raw Materials

№262. Sector-specific Activities as the Driving Force towards a Low-Carbon Economy. From the Asia-Pacific Partnership to a Global Partnership

№263. Stepping up Growth Policies

№270. How to Negotiate under Co-decision in the EU. Reforming Trilogues and First-Reading Agreements

№271. Europe’s Recurrent Employment Problems

№272. ‘Grexit’: Who would pay for it?

№273. Moving the EU from a Laggard to a Leader in Democracy Assistance: The Potential Role of the European Endowment for Democracy

№275. Implementing Basel III in Europe: Diagnosis and avenues for improvement

№276. Pre-empting Technical Barriers in the Single Market

№277. Unholy compromise in the eurozone and how to right it

№279. Can Italy and Spain survive rates of 6-7%?

№280. A Sovereign Wealth Fund to Lift Germany’s Curse of Excess Savings

№281. The EU’s Promotion of External Democracy: In search of the plot

№282. Banking Union: A federal model for the European Union with prompt corrective action

№283. A European Deposit Insurance and Resolution Fund - An Update

№284. Unleashing Competition in EU Business Services

№289. Banking Union with a Sovereign Virus. The self-serving regulatory treatment of sovereign debt in the euro area

№290. A Copernican Turn for Banking Union

№291. A Viable Alternative to Basel III Prudential Capital Rules

№292. E3+3 coercive diplomacy towards Iran: Do the economic sanctions add up?