Swiss bank UBS has completed the merger of its domestic unit with Credit Suisse’s operations in its home market, the bank said on Monday, adding that the head of the Credit Suisse business was leaving the bank. Andre Helfenstein, CEO of Credit Suisse Switzerland, has decided to leave the bank following the merger of UBS Switzerland […]
A race is raging among global powers to secure access to critical minerals to power the simultaneous energy and digital transitions the world is experiencing. The extraordinary growth in demand for critical minerals is putting upward pressure on prices and stimulating new critical mineral discoveries all around the world. However, in developing countries, this new […]
At the end of the 19th century in Italy, books and manuscripts were transferred from monasteries to public libraries, making much of the knowledge safeguarded in monastic libraries suddenly available to the public. This column explores the link between this development and innovation. Access to knowledge through public libraries significantly increased innovation: municipalities that received […]
Policies aimed at reducing economic fluctuations primarily focus on disruptive recessions, but booms may also have hidden costs. A rise in wages increases the opportunity cost of schooling, potentially leading students to abandon school prematurely. This column examines the impact of a tax reform in Iceland that cut taxes to zero for one year and […]
The 2023 Nobel Committee awarded the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel to Claudia Goldin. Among her many contributions is the emphasis on the non-monotonic trend in women’s employment over the course of US history, as the result of structural change and evolving social norms regarding women’s responsibilities for home […]
The ECB’s Governing Council moved to the preparation phase of the digital euro in October 2023. This column studies the implications of the digital euro for financial stability. New survey data indicate that German households are open to the digital euro. However, the demand for digital euro also raises financial stability concerns as households seem […]
Integrating ethnic minorities in the classroom enriches the educational environment, but some studies find that it lowers student test scores. This column explores what may drive such effects, using data from Taiwanese schools, where Indigenous students are randomly assigned to different classrooms. Students placed in classrooms with minority peers showed less effort, their parents invested […]
With his 2024 Spring Budget, UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt intends to deliver long-term growth through “more investment, more jobs, better public services and lower taxes.” The latest CfM-CEPR survey asked its panel to forecast the short-run effect of the announced national insurance contribution cut on the UK’s GDP, to predict whether the next government would […]
As the world grapples with signs of increasing geopolitical fragmentation, it is important to reflect on the lessons of the past. This column studies the economic impact of the Cold War, focusing on how the severity of trade barriers varied over time. While the Iron Curtain represented a tariff equivalent of 48% at its height […]
Industrial policies (government financial and non-financial support to businesses) are increasingly used in advanced economies. This column discusses the pros and cons of such policies, and outlines principles to inform policy guidelines. Data from nine OECD countries suggest governments actively provide support to selected industries, but the intensity of support varies over time, country, and […]
