In 2025, the US government underwent a large fiscal switch, with Congress enacting large income tax cuts and the second Trump administration putting new tariffs on goods at levels not seen in the US since the Great Depression. This column evaluates tariffs as a broad tool of fiscal policy, reviewing both tax policy and macroeconomic […]
Aussie slides as investors flock to safe-havens, yen strenghtens. The Australian dollar tumbled on Tuesday, while the safe-haven Swiss franc and Japanese yen strengthened as renewed signs of strains in U.S.-China trade relations dented risk sentiment and left investors ducking for cover. Trade and tariffs have been the main focus since dramatic market moves on […]
While trade debates focus on tariffs and goods, services have quietly defied deglobalisation and become an increasingly important driver of growth. Services trade not only generates productivity spillovers and labour-market gains, but it is also where future policy tensions could emerge. Yet services trade remains under-measured and under-studied. This column introduces the new Bilateral Trade […]
State aid regulation is crucial to ensuring competitiveness in the EU Single Market, but enforcement remains challenging. Non-compliance by member states and foreign subsidies are ongoing concerns; however, detection is difficult. This column proposes an approach to identify suspect cases of hidden state aid recipients using machine learning algorithms. The predictions allow regulators to substantially […]
