Publikationen der Abteilung Makroökonomie

Growth through Research and Development

DIW Berlin has examined the effects of investment in research and development on economic growth in Germany and other OECD countries. Their results show that an increase of one percentage point in research and development spending in the economy as a whole leads to a short-term average increase in GDP growth of approximately 0.05 to 0.15 percentage points. The coefficient for Germany is at the upper ...

A Stronger Union through Crisis? 25 Years of Monetary Integration in Europe

On July 1, 1990, when capital controls in the European Economic Community were removed, the path was paved for the introduction of the euro. This path was marked by a compromise between two schools of thought—those who assumed that the creation of the European Central Bank would be followed by greater economic convergence and political integration, and those who saw the single currency as the coronation ...

There Are Many Analogies between the GDR in 1990 and Greece Today: Four Questions to Marcel Fratzscher

Lessons for Europe from German Monetary Union

Precisely 25 years ago, on July 1, 1990, German monetary union came into force. On the same day, capital controls in Europe were abolished, creating the basis for European monetary union and the euro. These two historical events fundamentally changed Germany and the rest of Europe. Both German and European monetary union were and still are being heavily criticized and debated. Was the design of German ...

Upswing of German Economy Prevails

New Capital Requirements for EU Government Bonds Would Lead to Problems for Greece: Eight Questions to Dorothea Schäfer

Stricter Capital Requirements for Investing in EU Government Bonds as a Means of Creating a More Stable Financial System

In the wake of the European debt crisis, it has become clear that government bonds may actually be a risky form of investment. The Basel Committee and the Bundesbank have therefore opened an intense debate as to whether banks investing in EU government bonds should be subject to regulatory capital requirements in the future. Currently, banks do not need equity capital when investing in sovereign bonds. ...

ECB Bond Purchases: No Panacea for Deflation: Seven Questions to Kerstin Bernoth and Philipp König

Unchartered Territory: Large-Scale Asset Purchases by the European Central Bank

The European Central Bank (ECB) decided at its Council meeting in January to implement a comprehensive program to purchase bonds, including euro area government bonds. The purchases are intended to anchor the rate of inflation and inflation expectations at below but close to two percent again. Given the lack of experience with this unconventional monetary policy instrument, the ECB is venturing into ...

Upswing in a Subdued Global Economy: DIW Economic Outlook

The German economy continues to recover, and will grow by 2.2 percent in 2015 and by 1.9 percent in 2016. The unemployment rate will further decline, to 6.4 percent this year and 6.1percent in 2016. Inflation, which averages 0.5 percent this year, will be substantially dampened by the slump in oil prices; in 2016 as well, inflation will remain low, at 1.2 percent. The global economy continues in its ...