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Sluggish Business Investment in the Euro Area: The Roles of Small and Medium Enterprises and Debt

By John C. Bluedorn and Christian Ebeke

Small businesses could be the lifeblood of Europe’s economy, but their size and high debt are two of the factors holding back the investment recovery in the euro area. The solution partly lies in policies to help firms grow and reduce debt.

Our new study, part of the IMF’s annual economic health check of the euro area, takes a novel bottom-up look at the problem. We analyze the drivers of investment using a large dataset of over six million observations in eight euro area countries, from 2003 to 2013: Austria, Belgium, Germany, France, Finland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Continue reading “Sluggish Business Investment in the Euro Area: The Roles of Small and Medium Enterprises and Debt” »

By | August 4th, 2016|Economic research, euro zone, Finance, Financial Crisis, IMF, International Monetary Fund, Investment, Public debt, Uncategorized|0 Comments
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The Danger Zone: Financial Stability Risks Soar

We are back in the danger zone. Since our previous report, financial stability risks have increased substantially—reversing some of the progress that had been made over the previous three years. Several shocks have recently buffeted the global financial system: unequivocal signs of a broader global economic slowdown; fresh market turbulence in the euro area; and the credit downgrade of the United States. This has thrown us into a crisis of confidence driven by three main factors: weak growth, weak balance sheets, and weak politics.

By | September 21st, 2011|Economic research, Europe, Financial Crisis, Financial regulation, IMF, International Monetary Fund|9 Comments
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A Balanced Debate About Reforming Macroeconomics

The most remarkable aspect of the recent conference at the IMF was the broad consensus that the macroeconomic models that had been relied upon in the past and had informed major aspects of monetary and macro-policy had failed. They failed to predict the crisis and they provided limited guidance on how the economy should respond. There was also remarkable consensus about many elements of policy in responding to the crisis, and there were even large areas of policy consensus for the longer run. In short, the conference made an important contribution in invigorating a balanced debate about reforming macroeconomics.

By | March 22nd, 2011|Economic Crisis, Economic research, Financial Crisis, International Monetary Fund|15 Comments
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Is There a Silver Lining to Sluggish Credit Growth in the Gulf Countries?

Sluggish credit growth in the post-crisis period was hardly a unique development, as indicated in our latest Regional Economic Outlook for the Middle East and Central Asia region. But while there are clearer signs of recovery in some countries, credit to the private sector is still barely growing in the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council, notwithstanding policy efforts to revive it. It might seem easy to ring the alarm bells. But there are a number of reasons why we are not as concerned about the slowdown in credit growth—among them that the adjustment reflects a much needed correction from very high—perhaps unsustainable—rates of credit growth witnessed during the boom years.

By | December 7th, 2010|Economic Crisis, Economic outlook, Middle East, عربي|1 Comment
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