Publikationen des Vorstandsbereichs

German Bad Bank Plan: Government Should Take Over Toxic Assets at Zero Cost

With Germany's banking sector still suffering from the effects of the financial crisis, public discussion of plans to place toxic assets in one or more bad banks has gained steam in recent weeks. The following paper presents a bad bank plan from the German Institute for Economic Research. The key element of the plan is the valuation of troubled assets at their current market value - assets with no ...

Face to Face with the Financial Crisis: The U.S. Presidential Election from a Transnational Perspective

Much work awaits the new U.S. president. The U.S. has been financially depletedby the Iraq war, economic programs and necessary financial system restructuringcosts. The current financial crisis requires a government that takes an active hand ineconomic matters; at the same time, however, the state cannot deny the role that itplayed in bringing about the current problem: the housing market bubble was ...

Fear of Financial Investors Unjustified

In the midst of the international financial crisis, the German federal government passed the Risk Limitation Act in autumn 2007. In spring 2008 the Bundestag has finally decided on the law. The domestic private equity/buyout providers, which have not previously been subject to banking supervision, are among the main addressees of the act. Among others, "objectionable macroeconomic activities of financial ...

The Soccer World Cup in Germany: A Major Sporting and Cultural Event - But Without Notable Business Cycle Effects

The upcoming World Cup has raised high expectations in Germany, not just for the national team, but for the economy as well. As the cyclical upswing has mainly been supported by exports so far, hopes have been growing recently that this sporting event will have a positive and stimulating effect on domestic demand - partly by increasing consumer confidence - and so enable the upswing to gain breadth.1 ...

Demographic Change Necessitates Educational Reform and Lifelong Learning

Even though the share of workers retiring prematurely is growing, the average age of the labor force is rising because the younger age groups are contracting and the length of time they spend in education is increasing. And yet the German higher education system is relatively unproductive. While the propensity to study at the college level has increased, for demographic reasons the number of German ...

Income Growth in German Households: East Germany Falls Behind

Following the enormous growth in household incomes in the former East Germany during the first half of the 1990s (which was based, in particular, on meteoric wage rises, accompanying pension adjustments, and the increase in receipt of social welfare benefits), east German incomes subsequently expanded only moderately. Income growth was not as strong as in west Germany, largely because total earned ...

German Economy: Upswing Has Gained Breadth but Will Not Hold Pace: DIW Economic Outlook

The upswing of the German economy continues and since the beginning of 2017, even at a somewhat faster pace. Sharp gains in employment are still driving consumption. And companies are investing significantly more in machines and facilities. Many global risks that previously limited the propensity to invest—in Germany and many other countries—have vanished. And the euro area is also finally feeling ...

German Economy Booming but Not to the Point of Overheating: Editorial

Youth in Europe: Unemployment Falling but Major Labor Market Problems Persist

In spring 2013, youth unemployment in the EU peaked and then declined sharply. Yet at least one in every six members of the economically active population between age 15 and 24 in the EU is still unemployed, and the unemployment rate among young persons is still 2.5 times higher than that of adults. The present study shows how young people’s situation in the labor market has developed since 2013. The ...

Gender Pay Gap Varies Greatly by Occupation

The German labor market is characterized by marked occupational segregation between women and men. The median earnings in female dominated occupations are lower than those in male dominated professions. This is one of the reasons for the gender pay gap. However, there are also large differences in earnings between men and women within occupations. These profession-specific gender pay gaps are smaller ...