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Digital Skills: Social Disparities and the Impact of Early Mentoring

We investigate social disparities in digital skills, focusing on both actual proficiency levels and confidence in these skills. Drawing on a representative sample from Germany, we first demonstrate that both dimensions strongly predict labor market success. We then use this sample to identify gender and socioeconomic disparities in levels and confidence. Finally, using a long-run RCT panel framework ...

15 Euro Mindestlohn sind gut für Deutschland

Optimal Discounts in Green Public Procurement

We provide an auction-theoretical analysis of Green Public Procurement (GPP) as a preferential program aimed at stimulating investment in green technologies. We find that GPP incentivizes more competitive firms to invest. We also show that GPP can be an optimal mechanism for a procurer who cares about minimizing the purchasing price while triggering green investment.

Neue Regierung investiert Milliarden: wie gefährlich ist unsere Abhängigkeit vom Erdgas?

15 Euro Mindestlohn sind gut für Deutschland

Als vor zehn Jahren eine Lohnuntergrenze von 8,50 Euro eingezogen wurde, warnten Ökonomen vor Massenarbeitslosigkeit. Eine erneute Erhöhung wird der Wirtschaft helfen. Vor zehn Jahren wurde in Deutschland erstmals ein allgemeiner gesetzlicher Mindestlohn eingeführt – und er hat sich als großer Erfolg erwiesen. Auch deshalb hat die SPD in den Koalitionsverhandlungen gefordert, ihn ab kommendem Jahr ...

Public Communication and Collusion: New Screening Tools for Competition Authorities

Competition authorities increasingly rely on economic screening tools to identify markets where firms deviate from competitive norms. Traditional screening methods assume that collusion occurs through secret agreements. However, recent research highlights that firms can use public announcements to coordinate decisions, reducing competition while avoiding detection. We propose a novel approach to...

What is the “Right” Geographic Market Definition?

This paper examines the “right” geographic definition of relevant markets by analysing how excise tax pass-through varies with local competition in the retail gasoline market of Athens, Greece. Using a natural experiment from three unanticipated and exogenous fuel tax hikes in 2010 and detailed station-level price data, we show that average pass-through is almost complete and invariant to the...

On the road to net zero: Enhancing transition risk assessment with bank transition plans?

Bank transition plans (TPs) are becoming vital tools for assessing financial institutions' climate resilience and readiness for a sustainable economy. The EU’s 2024 Capital Requirements Directive 6 mandates that banks develop TPs for prudential oversight, with supervisors required to evaluate them. In response, the European Banking Authority (EBA) has issued guidelines to support banks in...

The Effects of Trade on CO2 Firm-Level Emission Intensity: Evidence from German Microdata

This paper examines how firms' CO2 emission intensity (CEI) responds to trade shocks. Changes in market conditions, such as trade shocks, are believed to drive specialization toward core products, foster innovation, improve productivity, and influence abatement choices. I develop a unified framework that decomposes within-firm changes in CEI into within- and between-product components and...

Sozial-ökologische Transformation - Wie kann das beschlossene Sondervermögen für Infrastruktur gezielt und erfolgsbringend eingesetzt werden?

Das im März 2025 beschlossene Sondervermögen des Bundes in Höhe von 500 Milliarden Euro für Infrastruktur bietet die Gelegenheit, die sozial-ökologische Transformation entscheidend voranzutreiben. Damit es jedoch seine volle Wirkung entfalten kann, müssen die Mittel gezielt eingesetzt werden. Im Rahmen eines Workshops wurden die Chancen durch das Sondervermögen aber auch die Herausforderungen für...