Article overview
Shiller on Corona-Panic – Better to shut down financial markets?
The Corona crisis has led to panic in the financial markets. Asset prices in some cases fell even lower than at the time of the financial crisis in 2008, which is why Nobel Prize winner Robert Shiller says that one should also think about temporarily suspending the markets.
Coronavirus Means Zero Hour for the European Union
Tom Ferguson (INET) and Edward Kane (Boston College) warn that the EU could collapse if its institutions repeat the mistakes of the Euro crisis.
Robert Shiller on Epidemics of Narratives – and the Corona-Crisis
Nobel prize laureate Robert Shiller is the expert when it comes to narratives in economics. We had the chance to talk to him this monday in an exclusive Forum New Economy seminar about his new book, important narratives and the parallels to the current crisis.
The Distribution of Wealth in Germany, 1895 to 2018
A new study by Thilo Albers, Charlotte Bartels and Moritz Schularick for the first time assesses the long-run evolution of wealth inequality in Germany.
Economic policy in the Corona crisis: Making the most of a crisis?
Covid-19 has paralyzed the global economy. What does this mean for Germany’s unprecedentedly internalized industrial sector? Here we give an overview of the economic policy implications.
IfW Kiel on the EU Financial Transaction Tax: “Instrument suitable, proposed implementation flawed”
According to a recent German-French proposal, a financial market transaction tax (FTT) on the purchase of securities is to be introduced in 10 EU countries. In their study, the authors of the Kiel institute for the world economy compare this proposal in an international perspective and develop policy recommendations.
Forum Seminar: The Economics of the EU‘s Green Deal – Highlights
The EU’s Green Deal is one of the most ambitious EU endeavours to fight climate change. Nevertheless, it still needs more to be more impactful and tangible for people. This has been one of the main common insights of our seminar on the economics of the deal this week in Berlin.
The EU’s Green Deal – on its Macroeconomic Potential
The announcement of a Green Deal for Europe as introduced by the European Commission made huge headlines. Now there is a trillion Euro question to be answered. Is it in reality only a 7.5 billion Euro question? We try to bring clarity with this Framing Paper which we wrote to complement our Green Deal seminar hosted on the 18th of February.
Dani Rodrik – New Firms for a New Era
Dani Rodrik argues that if firms, as social and political actors, are to serve the public good, workers and local communities should have a much bigger say in their decisions.
Tax debates – what really matters
Taxes are not levied to annoy people, but to steer economic and social development in line with a country’s political preferences. Tax reform is therefore central to shifting economic paradigms.
Inequality 101 with Branko Milanovic and Arjun Jayadev
Inequality may be the pressing issue of our time. Until recently however, inequality was seen as a normal externality with positive effects. Branko Milanovic and Arjun Jayadev break down all aspects of inequality for the Institute for New Economic Thinking in a new series called "Inequality 101".
Rebottling the Gini: why this headline measure of inequality misses everything that matters
In an article for Prospect Magazine Angus Deaton and Anne Case argue against the use of the most common indicator on inequality.
OUR MAIN TOPICS
New Paradigm
NEW PARADIGM
After decades of overly naive market belief, we urgently need new answers to the great challenges of our time. More so, we need a whole new paradigm to guide us. We collect everything about the people and the community who are dealing with the question of a new paradigm and who analyze the historical and present impact of paradigms and narratives – whether in new contributions, performances, books and events.
Redefining
the role of
the state
REDEFINING
THE ROLE OF
THE STATE
For decades, there was a consensus that reducing the role of the state and cutting public debt would generate wealth. This contributed to a chronic underinvestment in education and public infrastructure. New research focuses on establishing when and how governments need to intervene to better contribute to long-term prosperity and to stabilize rather than aggravate economic fluctuations.
Remaking
finance
REMAKING
FINANCE
More than a decade after the financial crisis there still seems to be something seriously wrong with the financial system. Financial markets still tend to periodically misprice risk and contribute to boom and bust cycles. A better financial system needs to discourage short-termism and speculative activity, curtail systemic risk and distribute wealth more broadly.
Greening
prosperity
GREENING
PROSPERITY
During the high point of market orthodoxy, economists argued that the most 'efficient' way to combat climate change was to simply let markets determine the price of carbon emissions. Today, there is a growing consensus that prices need to be regulated and that a carbon price on its own might not be enough.
Reducing
inequality
REDUCING
INEQUALITY
The rising gap between rich and poor has become a threat to social cohesion in most rich countries. To reverse this trend it will be crucial to better understand the importance of different drivers of income and wealth inequality.
Innovation Lab
INNOVATION LAB
Do we need a whole new understanding of economic growth? What would be a real alternative? How viable are alternatives to GDP when it comes to measuring prosperity? These and other more fundamental challenges are what this section is about.
Globalization
for all
GLOBALIZATION
FOR ALL
After three decades of poorly managed integration, globalization is threatened by social discontent and the rise of populist forces. A new paradigm will need better ways not only to compensate the groups that have lost, but to distribute the gains more broadly from the start.
Europe
beyond markets
EUROPE
BEYOND MARKETS
The euro was planned during a period in which economic policy making was driven by a deep belief in market liberalism and the near impossibility of systemic financial crises. This belief has been brought into question since the euro crisis, which showed that panics do happen. New thinking needs to focus on developing mechanisms to protect eurozone countries from such panics and to foster economic convergence between members.
Corona Crisis
CORONA CRISIS
The current Corona crisis is probably the worst economic crisis of the post-World War 2 era. Economists are working hard on mitigating the economic effects caused by COVID-19 to prevent a second Great Depression, the break-up of the Eurozone and the end of globalisation. We collect the most important contributions.