Independent research and policy analysis on fiscal, monetary, and
regulatory issues in Europe
We revisit the euro’s promise of convergence through a new Divergence Monitor tracking business and financial cycle synchronization since the 1980s. Business cycles became more aligned after 1999, but financial cycles stayed volatile and split into persistent core–periphery clusters. As …
Submit your research to the IREF Working Paper Series. Selected papers are eligible for publication and receive an honorarium of up to €2,000, including additional compensation for outreach (blogpost, podcast).
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For much of the past decade, Europe has been weighed down by prolonged economic stagnation. Growth has slowed, productivity has …
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As the story goes, there are no free rides. The costs of each journey must necessarily be borne by someone. …
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America’s housing market is failing a growing share of households. Prices and rents are at record highs, and homeownership is …
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UK government’s plans to track and de-risk its own ‘shadow debt’ show the costs of the Net Zero transition will be imposed directly onto businesses and consumers
by Bob LyddonIntroduction The UK Budget papers of November 2025 acknowledge the funding models through which the government plans to increase the …
by Bob Lyddon -
For more than two decades, the EU–Mercosur agreement remained out of reach—endlessly negotiated, periodically revived, and repeatedly declared dead. Since …
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The UK’s and EU’s Net Zero policies threaten to destroy their economies in the face of Trump’s oil-led US revival at US$50-per-barrel
by Bob LyddonIntroduction The US is on the move and the geopolitical scenario has moved quickly away from the certainties of the …
by Bob Lyddon -
Few economic collapses in modern history have been as dramatic, prolonged, and devastating as Venezuela’s. Once the wealthiest country in …

