Study
Europe’s Fiscal Crisis Revealed: An In-Depth Analysis of Spending, Austerity, and Growth
Read the Full Study at Heritage.org Italy’s current economic problems are the result of a decades-old web of business-stifling regulation and a…
National Interest
Can Europe Move Past Its Economic Malaise?
Will incoming European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker’s cabinet assignments set the scene for an economic turnaround within the European Union? The answer to that question…
EU Observer
Italy’s ‘trust no one’ culture holding back growth
For visitors this spring, a trip to Bella Italia’s countryside and picturesque towns will feel like taking a trip back in time. Because it is.
EU Observer
The Line To Get Into ‘Club Euro’ Is Growing
It’s 2014 and the euro is still in one piece. In fact, there’s a line outside to get into Club Euro. Latvia is the latest…
Blog
Selfishness Underlies the Shutdown, At Home and Abroad
Americans aren’t the only ones talking about government shutdown this week. Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi almost collapsed Italy’s government on Wednesday by threatening…
EU Observer
Government Shutdown, Italian Style
Misery loves company, goes the old saying. And in the face of government shutdown, America is not entirely alone. Head to Italy and the average…
EU Observer
Lessons from Italy: What happens when businesses are forced to move abroad
Co-written by Emilio Rocca THE 42 employees of Firem, an Italian heating systems maker, returned from their August holidays to find the plant where they…
EU Observer
Europe’s economy needs a real dose of pro-market reform
Recession has been eradicated in Europe. Hooray! Or at least, that’s what recent headlines and grandstanding from political leaders would have you believe. The…
Study
Praying for Growth at the GDP Altar
Blog
Europe’s Continued Stagnation Is Not Surprising, Given Lack of Reform
The Guardian reports that Italy’s record-long economic slump has continued for another quarter. This isn’t much of a surprise given Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s…
Blog
The HuffPo’s Sloppy Austerity Analysis
Mark Gongloff, a writer for the Huffington Post, claims to show “The Complete Failure of Austerity, In 1 Chart.” Wow! Either he has found…
Blog
Are Markets Rational When It Comes to Economic Fundamentals?
We hear frequently that financial markets thrive on irrational fears. That they are wrong to be wary of unreformed economies and that central banks are…
Blog
Austerity Means Cuts, Not More Spending
Despite its frequent use through the media and in political debate, few journalists and politicians actually use the term “austerity” correctly. But Cypriot Finance Minister…
EU Observer
Beware the Myth of European Austerity
Beware the Myth of European Austerity “France’s Austerity Drive Pushes Country into Recession.” “How Austerity Has Failed.” Thus proclaim two recent, typical…
EU Observer
Europe’s lessons on austerity success
With the U.S. national debt about to pass the $17 trillion mark – more than America’s total economic activity in 2012 – and federal interest…
Blog
New Study Dispels Myths of European Austerity
Cries throughout the media of “savage austerity” notwithstanding, only a handful of European countries have actually implemented austerity in the true sense of the term:…
EU Observer
Who Made Government Big? We Did
After U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced recently that the Fed would reduce its asset purchases through mid-2014, financial industry players and the journalists…
EU Observer
In Europe Cutting Taxes and Spending Leads to the Best Results
Matthew Melchiorre, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Warren Brookes Journalism Fellow, has written a report on so-called austerity in Europe showing that many…
Study
The True Story of European Austerity
European governments that have cut spending and taxes have higher rates of economic growth than their neighbors. Then why do we hear lamentations from the…
EU Observer
Coming Soon: A Dramatic Downshift In Company Size, Plus Hours Worked
A recent study on the impact on business growth of regulatory thresholds built into Italian labor laws is quite instructive of how this works. In…
Blog
France Needs a “Power-Up” When It Comes to Labor Reform
In its annual country report released on Monday, the IMF turned up the heat on France for labor reform. The Washington-based lender called for…
Blog
European Skepticism of Minimum Wage Falls on Deaf Ears in America
Spain’s central bank—operating within the European country with the highest rate of unemployment—just recommended to the government in Madrid a suspension of the minimum…
Blog
Does Austerity Really “Kill”?
Does austerity kill? In a recent New York Times op-ed, David Stuckler and Sanjay Basu claim that fiscal austerity leads to a worsening of health…
Blog
The Doctor Is In, America: Get With the Estonian Program
Don’t let the optimism surrounding last month’s job numbers fool you. The unemployment rate’s decline from 7.6 percent in March to 7.5 percent in…
Study
Separating European Austerity Fact and Fiction
Full Document available in PDF Rarely a week goes by without mention in the media of European governments’ failure to restore economic…
The American Spectator
Republicans Dishonor Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher’s passing led many around the world to reflect on her legacy. In the United Kingdom, reactions ranged from fond remembrances by supporters to…
The American Spectator
U.S. Should Copy Estonia, Which Made Austerity Work
Another month of disappointing job numbers is a painful reminder that the U.S. economy is struggling after almost five years of fiscal and monetary stimulus.
The American Spectator
The curse of bipartisanship: Why the grand coalition’s return won’t save Italy
THE re-election of Giorgio Napolitano as President of the Italian Republic this weekend – supported by the centre-left, centre-right, and the centre – is as…
Blog
Bitcoin: An Escape From Currency Debasement?
Although gold traditionally has been the alternative asset for those wary of fiat currency debasement, there is an emerging newcomer: virtual currency. Bitcoin, created in…
Blog
Cyprus Is A Lesson For U.S. Policy Makers: Too Big To Fail Is Not Inevitable
American financial regulators could take a lesson from their European counterparts. The recent EU bail-in/bailout of Cyprus, despite its dangers, shows that reducing moral hazard…
The American Spectator
Cypriot deal is welcome change to EU approach
BRUSSELS – In the wake of the bailout/half bail-in that is the Cyprus rescue package, Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem said last week the EU is…
The American Spectator
With Cyprus, The EU Needs To Urgently Erase Europe’s ‘Nobody Loses’ Mentality
“Horrifying.” “Dangerous.” “Shocking.” And yes, it is coming to a theater near you. Or so went the general reaction among the media and political punditry…
Blog
A Quick Investigation Of Central Bank Redistribution
Blog
Austerity Is Worth The Cost
In a January National Review article, I explained how Baltic countries such as Estonia that had undertaken short-lived but severe cuts to government spending…
The American Spectator
The return of the euro crisis
Without stronger economic growth, Italy can’t generate jobs and the tax revenues to shave the debt. Even before the financial crisis, growth was dismal, averaging…
Blog
Europe’s Latest Wake-Up Call: Italian Elections
Europe, which has been enjoying a recent respite from financial chaos, is about to get a rude awakening: Italian elections. Voters will go to the…
The American Spectator
Greek tragedy? Papandreou to lecture Ivy Leaguers on leading in crisis
“It’s good that students get to know firsthand knowledge of someone who was in the situation,” said Matthew Melchiorre, an expert on European economic affairs…
Blog
Baltic Success Reveals The Folly Of Obama’s Doublespeak
This week’s State of the Union address was full of plans for government action and spending to combat U.S. economic malaise. At the same…
The American Spectator
Why a ‘small’ bailout for little Cyprus is a big deal
The bailout of Cyprus is garnering much less attention than did the help provided to other struggling euro zone members. Cyprus is tiny, and rescue…
The American Spectator
France’s disappointing labor reforms
Businesses in France have long faced a hostile environment at home, with the country’s rigid labor laws among their chief complaints. This matters, as France…
Blog
Magician Economists Like Bernanke Can’t Pull Prosperity Out Of A Hat
The American Spectator
Value Destroyers Like Bernanke Fancy Themselves Magician Economists
Economics is not magic. Yet today, many prominent economists insist on pulling off an economic rabbit hat trick when they propose getting something for nothing.
Blog
More Evidence For Austerity’s Success
Third-quarter unemployment data from Eurostat, Europe’s statistical agency, provides still more proof actual cuts in teh size of government — what I call “real austerity”…
The American Spectator
Not All Austerity Is Equal
Prominent economists, politicians, and pundits throw around the term “austerity” as if policies by…
Blog
Europe’s Green Building Boondoggle: Benefits By 2064
A report released yesterday by the European Court of Auditors exposed the European Union’s €5 billion boondoggle into increasing “energy efficiency” in public buildings.
The American Spectator
Italy’s Zombie Politicians Have Crossed The Atlantic
Zombies have overrun Rome—and they’re spreading to Washington. Politics on both sides of the Atlantic is stuck in limbo between life and death as politicians…
Blog
Europe 2013: A Primer
As the New Year approaches, many challenges loom for Europe. Here’s a quick list of the toughest hurdles for 2013: 1. Implementing the Single…
Blog
France’s Anti-Business Orthodoxy
In France, running a productive business is not important. Simply creating jobs -- not wealth or innovation -- is the sole purpose of enterprise. At…
Blog
Stuck in Time: Italy’s Politics
Things have a way of repeating themselves. This is especially true in Italy, where politics have been stuck in a time loop for the…
The American Spectator
Italian politics: 1970s stuck on repeat
BRUSSELS – The inevitable loop of Italian politics repeated again this month when former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi – fresh from a tax fraud conviction…