*** MARCO BUTI, ANDRE SAPIR (Eds.): EMU and Economic Policy in Europe. The Challenge of the Early Years. Edward Elgar Publishing (Glensanda House, Montpellier Parade, Cheltenham, Glos GL50 1UA, UK. Tel: (44-1242) 226934 - Fax: 262111 - info@e-elgar.co.uk - Internet: http: //http://www.e-elgar.co.uk ). 2002, 485 pp, £75. ISBN 1-84376-152-1 and 92-894-3305-1.
Dedicated to former Director General Giovanni Ravaso, this book published for the Commission and edited by two members of the Political Advisor Group (André Sapir also lectures at the Université Libre de Bruxelles) draws valuable lesions from the early years of Economic and Monetary Union. As far as Commissioner Pedro Solbes sees it, these lessons are generally positive since the eurozone has managed to cope with a number of external crises and, more importantly, has manage dot avoid, or at least resolve, the political conflict of price stability and economic stabilisation. In the introduction, Pedro Solbes holds true to his view that for EMU to function smoothly, particularly in the start-up phase, it is absolutely essential to strengthen political coordination as part of a multilateral surveillance process aiming at the end of the day to avoid one or more Member State having to suffer from specific crises. At the same time, Commissioner Solbes calls for closer dialogue between the EMU stakeholders (the ECB, Ecofin, Eurogroup and the Commission) to allow the emergence of a common assessment of the economic climate to reduce the risk of political conflict.
The first chapter is written by the book's editors. It analyses economic policies pursued in the eurozone in terms of EMU credibility (the key issue in the early years). The remainder of the book takes an in-depth look at the multi-faceted challenges faced in the first stages. Three chapters focus on monetary issues, with further chapters looking at budget policy. The fourth part of the book considers the crucial issue of coordinating economic policies, revising the different coordination processes operating in the EU and taking critical look at progress to date. The next set of chapters looks at the impact of EMU on how markets operate, where the authors consider the international role of the euro. The last part of the book looks to the future, from the angle of the challenges of enlargement facing the eurozone. This book is written by leading academics and is vital reading for people interested in the adventure of the single currency.
Michel Theys
*** JENNIFER C. MARTIN-DAS: The European Monetary Union in a Public Choice Perspective. Edward Elgar Publishing (Glensanda House, Montpellier Parade Cheltenham, Glos, GL50 1 UA, UK. Tel: (44-1242) 226934 - Fax: 262111 - Info@e-elgar.co.uk - Internet: http: //http://www.e-elgar.co.uk ). 2002, 318 pp. ISBN 1-84064-561-X.
Is it possible these days to do without common economic governance, with euros jangling in our pockets for more than a year now? This question summarises a debate concerning the formation of Economic and Monetary Union. This book aims to provide various solutions. The author is doctor of economics from George Mason University and a researcher at New Jersey State University. She explains how economic crises can interact with political interests, giving off enough energy to unsettle Economic and Monetary Union. Jennifer Martin-Das starts by giving an overview of Western European countries' attempts since the beginning of the nineteenth century to form monetary union. The following chapter continues on the same theme, up until the end of the Second World War. This section focusses on the institutions that preceded and paved the way for Economic and Monetary Union. The second part looks at the current epoch. The aims of EMU, such as price stability, have been subject to a series of theoretical interpretations, which the author outlines and compares with empirical data from the eurozone. The next chapter does likewise for budget and monetary matter. The book then looks at relations between institutions like the European Parliament, Commission and Council with the European Central Bank. Shedding light on the complex nature of procedures, the author reveals the huge number of political levers that exist. The last two chapters look at macroeconomic crises within the eurozone, pointing out that giving up national currency means giving up the use of monetarism to deal with crises in a restricted arena, which can be a fertile breeding ground for the argument for turning back. The other side of the coin, one could say …
(AD)
*** FRITZ BREUSS, GERHARD FINK, STEFAN GRILLER (Eds.): Institutional, Legal and Economic Aspects of the EMU. Springer Verlag (4-6 Sachsenplatz, A-1201 Vienna. Tel: (43-1) 3302415-0 - Fax: 3302426 - springer@springer.at - Internet: http: //http://www.springer.at ). "Research Institute for European Affairs Publication Series - Forschungsinstitut für Europafragen der Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien", No. 23. 2003, 346 pp, 60 euros. ISBN 3-211-83856-2, 60.
Researchers and practitioners (many of them from Vienna's business university, the “Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien”) look at the institutional, legal and economic aspects of Economic and Monetary Union in this book. Their ten essays are divided up under four headings - the institutional and legal framework of EMU; the ramifications of budget policy in Europe; monetary policy and the financial markets; and the impact enlargement will have on EMU. The authors look at questions like whether the European Central Bank can be seen as the fourth pillar of the EU's legal structure, how the Stability and Growth Pact affects budget policy and the role of the euro as an international currency. The chapters on enlargement are particularly noteworthy. Using the “optimal monetary zone” theory and empirical macroeconomic research, Bernhard Mahlberg and Ralf Kronberger outline the macroeconomic problems to be overcome if candidate countries are to join the euro. Peter R. Haiss concludes that candidate countries' finance and banking industries will have to be seriously consolidated before joining Economic and Monetary Union can be considered. The book provides an interesting overview of various theoretical and practical sides of EMU and will be appreciated by academic researchers and legal and political practitioners alike.
(PB)
*** DAVID GREEN, KARL PETRICK (Eds.): Banking and Financial Stability in Central Europe. Integrating Transition Economies into the European Union. Edward Elgar Publishing (Glensanda House, Montpellier Parade, Cheltenham, Glos GL50 1UA, UK. Tel. (44-1242) 226934 - Fax: 262111 - Info@e-elgar.co.uk - Internet: http: //http://www.e-elgar.co.uk ). 2002, 215 pp. ISBN 1-84064-512-1.
One of the outcomes of a research project funded by the European Union under PHARE, this book compares three countries which will soon be joining the EU, namely the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia, in the light of one of the most explosive economic questions posed at the beginning of the twenty-first century, namely the transition of countries with a centralised economy towards a market economy, particularly in terms of business and banking. The authors are academics and practitioners from central and Eastern Europe and the United States. They extrapolate the case of the three countries in question to the other Eastern European candidate countries, making a comparison with the transition to democracy in Spain, Portugal and Greece. The central banks' economic role in these prospective Member States' transition periods are explained, along with their unifying role. The authors note that the shared objective of financial stabilisation has not led to the adoption of similar policies in the three countries studied, each of which has chosen markedly different directions towards reform. The Czech Republic's vast wave of privatisation to domestic investors failed to achieve stability, so the country then sold assets to foreign investors. Hungary immediately sought foreign investors, enabling it to reasonably meet the pre-accession criteria but at a hugely expensive and painful cost. By contrast, Slovenia has largely excluded foreign investors and has achieved slow but efficient progress. There are both positive and negative aspects to each of the three outcomes and this book reveals the huge range of possibilities.
(JNI)
*** BARBARA DUTZLER: The European System of Central Banks: An Autonomous Actor ? The Quest for an Institutional Balance in EMU. Springer-Verlag (see details attached). Collection "Research Institute for European Affairs Publication Series", n° 22. 2003, 270 p., 50 euros. ISBN 3-211-83861-9.
On the basis of a quote by Winston Churchill, who said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all the other preceding forms of government, Barbara Dutzler, from the Austrian Federal Finance Ministry, tries her hand at the difficult task of outlining the environment in which the European System of Central Banks is developing. Her aim is to show that the institution presided by Wim Duisenberg is among the most independent central banks in the world. The central and vital question is: how to strike a balance, how to reconcile "independence" with "autonomy" for such institutions, while bearing in mind the need to guarantee their democratic legitimacy? What is the future, and what are the consequences of such concepts in the broader context of integrating the European Central Bank in the workings of the Union? Ms Dutzler's work should, in fact, be seen in a far broader light than just a description of the technical aspects and legal constraints in which common monetary policy develops. The author succeeds in doing this in a very interesting way as the many developments unfold. The first part dissects the ways in which the European System of Central Banks works, its aims and the degree of autonomy granted to the European Central Bank itself. The following chapters focus on theoretical debates on independence and democracy, autonomy and reliability, ending in a substantive comparison on the respective ways in which the European Central Bank and initial model, the US Federal Reserve, work. The analysis goes into great detail on the theoretical and almost philosophical foundations underpinning the political remit of such monetary institutions, then, by way of conclusion, takes up a number of possible recommendations for reform for the future of the European System of Central Banks.
(PBU)
*** Bulletin de l'Observatoire des politiques économiques en Europe. Pôle économique de gestion et d'économie (61 av. de la Forêt Noire, F-67085 Strasbourg. E-mail: thierry.stolle@urs.u-strasbg.fr - Internet: http: //opee.u-strasbg.fr). 2003, n° 8, 40 pages, 5 euros.
The result of collaboration between the Louis Pasteur University (Faculty of Economic Science and Management) and the Robert Schuman University (Advanced European Studies Institute) in Strasbourg, the Bulletin is wholly devoted to Economic and Monetary Union. "A new cycle of EMU corodination", "the European model for anticipating the impact of Community policies on employment", "definitive single currency", "laborious application of the Stability and Growth Pact", "the ECB's monetary policy: uncertainty and immobility" - these are just a few of the themes of some of the very rich contributions.
(MT)
*** GERTRUD BUCHENRIEDER: Sequencing of Institution Building in the Transition Process of Central and Eastern Europe's Financial Systems. Peter Lang (15 Jupiterstrasse, CH-3000 Bern 15. Tel./fax: (41-131) 9402131 - Internet: http://www.peterlang.de ). 2002, 513 p.. ISBN 3-631-39885-7.
The transformation of the ex-Communist economies into market economies shows how important it is to have adequate institutions. The aim of this book, the work of a teacher at the German University of Hohenheim, is to finely define the specific components of the transition countries, and, above all, the Visegrad countries (Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia), which are considered as the most advanced in the transition process, as well as Bulgaria and Romania. The study takes an interest in the theoretical aspects, concepts and monetary and financial intermediaries, as well as in the specific problems encountered in the context of the transformation of the rural financial markets. Comparisons are established between the various countries concerned.
(LD)
*** GERHARD FINK, PETER HAISS, SIRMA HRISTOFORONA: Bond Markets and Economic Growth. University of Economics and Business Administration (39-45 Althanstrasse, A-1090 Vienna. Tel.: (43-1) 313364135 - fax: 31336758 - Email: europafragen@wu-wien.ac.at). Collection "Research Institute for European Affairs Working Papers", n° 49. 2003, 36 p., 7,20 euros.
Although literary works on the financial sector and economic development abound, one area still remains somewhat unexplored, that of the bond markets. The present publication by the Vienna University aims to fill this void. At the heart of macro-economic research projects lies an empirical analysis of the financial sector's contribution to true economic growth. On the basis of grand theories and a concise selection of studies by the financial sector, the authors present evidence that a connection exists between the bond markets and real economic growth in the Europe of Fifteen, the United States, Japan, Switzerland and Norway.
(MLJ)
*** EUROPEAN COMMISSION (Official Publications Office of the European Communities, L-2985 Luxembourg. Internet: http: //publications.eu.int) has published the following documents:
*** RDT info. DG Research ( ML DG 1201, Postal Box 2201, L-1022 Luxembourg. Tel: (32-2) 2959971 - fax: 2958220 - E-mail: research@cece.eu.int- Internet: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/research/rtdinfo/rtd-adrf.html ). May 2003, No. 37, 40 p..
The main article this month focuses on road safety, an area where research is very much sought after, r ranging from the anatomy and physical nature of materials to electronics. The main article looks at efforts taken to improve crash-tests and intelligent car systems. Other subjects include the development of vegetable and animal roots adapted to the need of countries in the south so that they can resist bacteriologic infections. Useful contacts and links are proposed for each subject.
*** Statistical References. Eurostat (Internet: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/eurostat ). 2003, No. 1, 12 pp.
This newsletter outlines the services proposed by Eurostat, as well as the catalogue containing its latest publications. This is the first ever issue.
*** Revue du marché commun et de l'Union européenne. Editions techniques et économiques (3 rue Soufflot, F-75005 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 55426130 - Fax: 55426139 - Internet: http://www.editecom.com - E-mail: editecom@starnet.fr). June 2003, No. 469, 61 p. Subscription: 169 euros.
In this issue, Noëlle Lenoir, French Delegate Ministers for European Affairs, looks at the future European constitution and its capacities to withstand certain imperfections in the European Criminal Law Area. Other subjects tackled in this issue included the: the implications of the "Zero-Deaths" concept within the CFSP, the present situation governing the principle of subsidiarity, ten years after the Maastricht treaty, Community take-overs and reform of the Central Bank .
*** Télémaque. Ecole supérieure de journalisme de Lille (50 rue Gauthier-de-châtillon, F-59046 Lille Cedex. Internet: http://www.esj-lille.fr ). May 2003, No. 1, 96 pp, 5 euros. Supplement to "Cahiers du journalisme", No.12, October 2003.
Edited and produced by students at the school of journalism in Lille, this magazine examines "The other Faces of Europe, from Guayana to Estonia and the meeting of minority identities". Often bitter, sometimes sweet, the articles take us through the continent beginning with the history of the meeting of the different figures and people, who tell a story of a little known Europe.
*** Europe Infos. OCIPE - Catholic European Study and Information Center (42 rue Stévin, B-1000 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 2350510 - fax: 2303334 - E-mail: europeinfos@comece.org). June 2003, No. 50, 12 pp, subscription: 20 euros.
Europe Infos makes a detailed exploration of "The Churches in the future Union" and the setting up of a president of the European Council. Pierre de Charenteney, Editor-in-Chief insists on the need to "listen to reason" in order to continue to push forward European integration, with the inspiration of the founding fathers having cooled off somewhat. This edition also has articles on the Balkans, Europe's relationship with its neighbours and the meeting of the European churches in Norway.
*** Paneuropa Intern. Paneuropa-Union Deutschland (17 Dachauer Strasse, D-80335 München. Tel: (49-89) 554683 - fax: 594768). May 2003, No. 6, 4 p. Subscription: 95 euros.
Paneuropa emotionally recalls the bloody repression of demonstrations of workers in Berlin by Soviet troops on 17 June 1953. You will also find in these pages the wish expressed by Greece to see Croatia integrated into the Union around 2007, the strengthening of the pro-European links and the issue of European borders.
Reviews in brief
*** Art.88-4 de la constitution. Délégation pour l'Union européenne de l'Assemblée nationale. n°866, June 2003, Paris. This report presents all the European papers submitted to the delegation for the European Union of the French National Assembly between 15 - 16 May. *** NASDAQ. BPL Business Media. July- August 2003, New York. The current situation for some companies quoted on the NASDAQ…***Annual report 2002. World savings banks institute. The annual report added to the declaration of Madrid as well as a directory of members on CD-ROM.