woensdag 4 augustus 2010
The feasibility to regionalise corporate income taxation
Read this report from Prof. A. Haelterman (KUL) here.
Bernanke: Short Run Deficits Unavoidable
Watch Bernanke's press conference on the Wall Street Journal here.
Confessions of an armchair economist
"Anniversaries are a time for reflection and, as the third anniversary of the credit crunch approaches, I have been doing some reflecting on where I went wrong as an economist. My own errors, of course, are of particular interest only to me, but I fear that they are fairly representative of the economics profession." Read Tim Harford's article in the Financial Times here.
It's Time for Germany to Change Its Immigration Laws
Economics Minister Rainer Brüderle wants to make Germany more attractive to foreign specialists by offering them financial incentives to immigrate. It is not a new idea, and neither is the debate that has ensued. But commentators say the time has come to open up the gates to qualified workers. Read the complete article on Der Spiegel International here.
To spend or not to spend: Is that the main question?
he debate over fiscal policy has reached a fork in the road. One way leads to maintaining or increasing the fiscal stimulus. This column argues that policymakers should take the other path. This would mean phasing out government expenditure while phasing in social protection programmes at the risk of a double-dip recession but potentially resulting in a more vibrant economy. Read Guillermo Calvo's article on EUVOX here. The author is Professor of Economics, International and Public Affairs at Columbia University.
The Great Brain Race
For decades, research universities in the United States have been universally acknowledged as the world’s leaders in science and engineering, unsurpassed since World War II in the sheer volume and excellence of the scholarship and innovation that they generate. But there are growing signs that the rest of the world is gaining ground fast – building new universities, improving existing ones, competing hard for the best students, and recruiting US-trained PhDs to return home to work in university and industry labs. Is the international scholarly pecking order about to be overturned? Read Ben Wildavsky' column for Project Syndicate here. The author is a senior fellow in research and policy at the Kauffman Foundation and author of The Great Brain Race: How Global Universities Are Reshaping the World.
Senioren doen ING bakzeil halen
De senioren van vandaag, en zeker van morgen, zijn mondiger geworden en laten zich niet zomaar doen. Dat bleek gisteren nog maar eens. Lees het volledige artikel in De Standaard hier.
China's Real Estate Bubble Threatens to Burst
Two years after the US subprime crisis, China is seeing its own real estate bubble as a result of massive state stimulus programs. Many economists are warning it could burst soon, with unpredictable results for the global economy.
Read this article in the Spiegel Online Internatational here.
Les titres-services ne connaissent pas la crise
Le système des titres-services a continué de se développer durant la crise économique de 2009, ressort-il d'une étude de l'entreprise de consultance "IDEA Consult" réalisée sur demande des autorités.
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
dinsdag 3 augustus 2010
Gender gaps in performance pay
The competitive paradigm predicts equivalent wages for equivalent workers, but significant gender gaps persist in many labor markets. This column analyses the gap in earnings between Spanish men and women, focusing on performance-related pay. It shows a strikingly large gap in pay and suggests that employer beliefs about unbalanced household tasks and outside options generate “a marriage premium” for males and a “marriage penalty” for women. Read the complete article on EUVOX here.
Regionale gezondheidszorg lijkt mission impossible
Het Belgische gezondheidszorgsysteem is een bijzonder complex gebeuren. Niet alleen omdat er zoveel veeleisende belangengroepen zijn. Lees het opiniestuk van Bert Lauwers in Trends hier.
Van brugpensioen naar werkbrug
De werkloosheid begint te dalen. Maar niet voor iedereen. Lees het volledige commentaarstuk van Guy Tegenbosch in De Standaard hier.
Gemakkelijker ontslaan is soms goed voor de tewerkstelling
Een pleidooi om de ontslagregeling van de duurdere bedienden te versoepelen? RUDI DE KERPEL leest het graag. Uit zijn ervaring als bedrijfsleider put hij nog meer ideeën. Lees het volledige opiniestuk in De Standaard hier.
L'Inasti publie des statistiques interactives
Consultez en mode interactif les données pour 2009 ici.
Antoine défend le régime wallon d'écobonus
Le ministre wallon du Budget, André Antoine (cdH), a défendu, par voie de communiqué de presse, le régime wallon de primes aux voitures vertes, dont la réforme est critiquée par la fédération automobile Febiac.
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
Priorité à la pension légale
Alors que le préformateur Elio Di Rupo (PS) a repris du collier pour deux semaines de préformation en vue d’une future coalition fédérale, le Comité consultatif pour le secteur des pensions a présenté hier son "Avis au formateur et au futur ministre des Pensions".
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
maandag 2 augustus 2010
Renewables 2010: Global Status Report
The Renewables 2010 Global Status Report provides an integrated perspective on the global renewable energy situation. Since the first Global Status Report was produced five years ago, the analysis has become the most frequently referenced report on renewable energy business and policy, serving a wide range of audiences from investors and government decision makers to students, project developers, researchers, and industrial manufacturers. It provides testimony of the undeterred growth of electricity, heat, and fuel production capacities from renewable energy sources, including solar PV, wind power, solar hot water/heating, biofuels, hydropower, and geothermal.
Read this report from the World Watch Institute here.
Assessing the effects of ICT in education
Despite the fact that education systems have been heavily investing in technology since the early 1980s, international indicators on technology uptake and use in education are missing. This book aims to provide a basis for the design of frameworks, the identification of indicators and existing data sources, as well as gaps in areas needing further research.
The contributions stem from an international expert meeting in April 2009 organised by the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning, in co-operation with OECD (CERI), on benchmarking technology use and effects in education. The contributions clearly demonstrate the need to develop a consensus around approaches, indicators and methodologies.
Read this EU/OECD report here.
The contributions stem from an international expert meeting in April 2009 organised by the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning, in co-operation with OECD (CERI), on benchmarking technology use and effects in education. The contributions clearly demonstrate the need to develop a consensus around approaches, indicators and methodologies.
Read this EU/OECD report here.
De geografie van de sociale zekerheid in België
Lees de volledige publicatie van het Centrum Herman DeLeeck van de UA hier.
The pursuit of happiness
Australians are among the most satisfied people in the world with almost 90 per cent very satisfied or satisfied with their lives, despite having to work harder to juggle family, job and financial pressures, according to the latest AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth Report.
Australia ranks equal third with the United States and Sweden in overall life satisfaction among OECD countries, with an average score of 7.9 out of 10, beaten only by Ireland, Norway and Denmark (equal first) and Finland and Canada (equal second).
The AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth Report: The pursuit of happiness explores life satisfaction trends in Australia, examining how different aspects of people's lives impact on happiness.
Australia ranks equal third with the United States and Sweden in overall life satisfaction among OECD countries, with an average score of 7.9 out of 10, beaten only by Ireland, Norway and Denmark (equal first) and Finland and Canada (equal second).
The AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth Report: The pursuit of happiness explores life satisfaction trends in Australia, examining how different aspects of people's lives impact on happiness.
Read this AMP report here.
Obama's Policies Seen as Better than Bush's for Improving the Economy
While most Americans disapprove of Barack Obama’s handling of the economy, far more think his administration’s policies – rather than those of the Bush administration – would do more to improve economic conditions over the next few years. As Congress gears up for debate over the tax cuts passed when Bush was president, the public is divided, with roughly equal numbers in favor of keeping all of Bush’s tax cuts, repealing only those for wealthy Americans, or scrapping them entirely. Read the results of the Pew Research poll here.
What do we know about the causes of the crisis?
The global crisis has left many calling for early warning systems to prompt authorities into action before it’s too late. This column argues that such a system is restricted by our understanding of what caused the crisis in the first place. Indeed, it shows that popular explanations for the current crisis have little to no ability to predict past crises. Read the complete article on EUVOX here.
Inégalité de traitement entre travailleurs licenciés
Dans leur malheur, les travailleurs licenciés en masse perçoivent souvent “une enveloppe” en plus de la réparation classique. Par contre, un travailleur – au même profil – licencié d’une PME ne percevra qu’un seul dédomagement.
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
Entreprendre est à nouveau à la mode en Flandre
La plupart des nouveaux entrepreneurs sont situés dans la province d'Anvers, suivie par la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale et la Flandre orientale.
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
vrijdag 30 juli 2010
Making Sense of the Climate Impasse
Jeffrey D. Sachs: " The Wall Street Journal has run an aggressive editorial campaign against climate science for decades. The individuals involved in this campaign are not only scientifically uninformed, but show absolutely no interest in becoming better informed." Read his column on Project Syndicate here.
Britain Plans to Scrap Mandatory Retirement Age in 2011
The British government on Thursday proposed to scrap a much-criticized rule that allows employers to require workers to retire when they turn 65. Read the complete article in The NYTimes here.
Schumpeter: A post-crisis case study
The new dean of Harvard Business School promises “radical innovation”. Read the complete article in The Economist here.
More stress ahead
It will take more than stress tests to resolve European banks’ funding problems. Read the complete article in The Economist here.
Europa steunt Vlaamse topopleidingen
"Dit jaar gaat Vlaanderen lopen met een kwart van alle Erasmus Mundus erkenningen". Lees het volledige artikel in De Standaard hier.
Konijnenpooteconomie
We zijn bijna allemaal staatskapitalisten nu. In het Westen staan we weliswaar nog ver van het Chinese staatskapitalisme, maar ook hier zullen de overheden en centrale bankiers nog jaren een hoofdrol spelen in de economie. Lees het volledige opiniestuk van Daan Killemaes in Trends hier.
Variations de la fécondité dans les pays développés: disparités et influences des politiques d'aide aux familles
Les politiques d’aide aux familles semblent avoir un impact avéré mais d’ampleur limitée sur les taux de fécondité : les aides financières, conditionnées ou non au statut au regard de l’emploi, ont un effet évident sur le calendrier des naissances (mais leur effet sur la fécondité finale est plus incertain) ; les dispositifs favorables à la conciliation emploi-famille apparaissent, quant à eux, particulièrement importants dans le choix d’avoir ou non des enfants. Les aides renforcent, cependant, souvent les différences de comportement entre les classes sociales. Cependant, l’effet des aides mis ainsi en évidence est certainement sous-estimé en raison de la difficulté à saisir leurs effets plus ou moins directs à long terme.
Lisez ce rapport sur le site des Caisses d'Allocations Familliales en France ici.
De geografie van de sociale zekerheid in België
Stelsels van sociale zekerheid genereren herverdelingen van inkomens tussen regionale entiteiten. De systemen van interpersoonlijke herverdeling geven aanleiding tot geldstromen tussen de verschillende deelgebieden van een land in de mate dat sociale risico’s ongelijk verdeeld zijn over de regio’s en/of dat de capaciteit om bij te dragen aan de stelsels van sociale zekerheid regionaal verschilt en/of dat er verschillen zijn in de uitvoeringswijze van de stelsels van de sociale zekerheid en/of in de inhoud van het flankerende beleid (bv. arbeidsbemiddeling, onderwijs, etc.). In België wordt daarbij doorgaans gekeken naar de transferten tussen de politiek relevante deelentiteiten, Vlaanderen en Wallonië. In dit CSB-Bericht schetsen Bea Cantillon, Seppe De Blust en Aaron Van den Heede van het Centrum voor Sociaal Beleid Herman Deleeck aan de Universiteit Antwerpen de geografische structuur van de inter-persoonlijke transfers door de verdeling van sociale zekerheidsbijdragen en uitkeringen op gemeentelijk niveau in kaart te brengen.
Lees dit rapport van het Centrum voor Sociaal Beleid Herman Deleeck hier.
Les longues négociations « coûtent » à la sécurité sociale
La longueur des négociations pour la formation d’un gouvernement fédéral pourrait provoquer un déficit de trésorerie au sein de l’ONSS. La sécurité sociale doit trouver d’urgence un milliard.
Lisez cet article dans Le Soir ici.
Encore deux semaines de préformation
Di Rupo fera aujourd’hui son deuxième rapport intermédiaire chez le Roi. Les négociateurs sont à la limite du blocage sur l’institutionnel.
Lisez l'article dans LLB ici.
Public debt and growth
This paper explores the impact of high public debt on long-run economic growth. The analysis, based on a panel of advanced and emerging economies over almost four decades, takes into account a broad range of determinants of growth as well as various estimation issues including reverse causality and endogeneity. In addition, threshold effects, nonlinearities, and differences between advanced and emerging market economies are examined. The empirical results suggest an inverse relationship between initial debt and subsequent growth, controlling for other determinants of growth: on average, a 10 percentage point increase in the initial debt-to-GDP ratio is associated with a slowdown in annual real per capita GDP growth of around 0.2 percentage points per year, with the impact being somewhat smaller in advanced economies. There is some evidence of nonlinearity with higher levels of initial debt having a proportionately larger negative effect on subsequent growth. Analysis of the components of growth suggests that the adverse effect largely reflects a slowdown in labor productivity growth mainly due to reduced investment and slower growth of capital stock.
Read this IMF Working Paper here.
Read this IMF Working Paper here.
donderdag 29 juli 2010
The Dragon's Embrace: China's Soft Power Is a Threat to the West
China may have no intentions of using its growing military might, but that is of little comfort for Western countries. From the World Trade Organization to the United Nations, Beijing is happy to use its soft power to get what it wants -- and it is wrong-footing the West at every turn. Read the complete article on Der Spiegel International here.
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