Martin Leschke

Constitutional Choice and Prosperity: A Factor Analysis

Forempirical purposes most studies on the influence of freedom on prosperity across nations use either aggregate measuresof economic freedom combined with a measure of political liberty,or single components of these aggregates to describe the freedom-variable.For a scholar of constitutional economics, both these approachesdo not seem to be satisfactory. From his theoretical viewpointhe would favor an approach that focuses on properties of thepolitico-economic order that can be interpreted as appropriateconstraints for preferred outcomes. Factor analysis is the methodused in this paper to extract from a pool of components thatdescribe freedom two main factors, namely (1) the appropriatenessof the framework in which the market operates, and (2) the degreeof political interventions into the market process. It is shownthat these two factors have great influence on the prosperityof nations.

A Critique of Welfare Economics

“Welfare Economics” is a branch of economics that evaluates well-being. It focuses on the optimal allocation of resources and goods in competitive markets and how this affects individual and social welfare. This article argues that such results which emerge through the market process cannot be judged without taking into account the institutions of the market and of the political process (i.e. the “rules of the game”). To ignore this is a blind spot of welfare economics.

Der Beitrag von Ronald Coase zur Theorie und Praxis der Wirtschaftspolitik

I. Einleitung ......................................................................................................... 3 II. Transaktionskosten und Unternehmen ............................................................. 4 III. Das Problem der sozialen Kosten (Externalitätenproblem) ............................. 5 IV. Zur Monopolund Kollektivgutproblematik.................................................... 7 V. Für welche Theorie sollte man sich entscheiden? ............................................ 9 VI. Fazit ................................................................................................................ 11

Die Europäische Union: Vom Garanten zum Bedroher der Freiheit

ZusammenfassungDie Grundlagen und Prinzipien der freien Gesellschaft sind das Fundament für Fortschritt und wirtschaftliche Prosperität in den entwickelten Staaten. Die Europäische Integration sollte daher bestrebt sein, Freiheit zu sichern und die Chancen für die Bürger in Europa stetig zu vergrößern. Die EU-Politik zum Teil vor, doch vor allem im Zuge der Finanz-, Konjunktur-, Struktur- und Verschuldungskrise hat nun allerdings begonnen, genau die Prinzipien ‚über Bord zu werfen‘, denen wir unsere Freiräume und unseren Wohlstand zu verdanken haben dem Beitrag wurde gezeigt, wie zahlreiche Verletzungen gegen Prinzipien die Freiheit in Europa einengen. Zu dem eingeschlagenen Weg der Diffusion von Verantwortlichkeiten und Sozialisierung von Kosten gibt es jedoch Alternativen. Diesbezüglich wurde für die Idee einer flexibleren Integration geworben, bei der der gemeinsame Anker nicht die Währung ist — hier muss es Exit-Möglichkeiten geben —, sondern die Prinzipien der Rechtsstaatlichkeit und des gemeinsamen Marktes.AbstractThe foundations and principles of a free society are the fundament for progress and prosperity in the industrial countries. The European integration in this regard started with the objective to increase the freedom and opportunities of individuals in Europe even further, which was a good idea. EU policy in the crisis (and partly before), however, has begun to offend against these principles of a free society. This has the consequence that freedom and opportunities of the individuals will decrease. But there are alternatives to the chosen path of ‘diffusion of responsibility’ and ‘socialization of cost’. In this regard, the idea of a more flexible integration was promoted, where not the currency — the Euro — is the common anchor, but the principles of the rule of law and of the free common market.

A critical review of the real interest rate concept

The neutral real interest rate (NRIR) is defined as the level of the real interest rate that is consistent with low and stable inflation and real production corresponding to potential production. To put it differently: the NRIR is the rate consistent with the output gap (y − y*) and inflation gap Open image in new window being zero, where y (y*) represents (potential) output and Open image in new window is actual (target) inflation.

Zurück zur Geldmengenorientierung

Seit 2001 trat im Euro-Raum ein starkes Geldmengenwachstum auf, dem kein entsprechender Verbraucherpreisauftrieb folgte. Ist die Geldmenge als Steuerungsinstrument der Geldpolitik obsolet geworden? Auf welchem geldpolitischem Konzept sollte die Strategie der Europäischen Zentralbank basieren?

A call for publishing ECB Council meeting minutes

By publishing Governing Council meeting minutes, the ECB could improve the transparency and efficiency of its monetary policy substantially, thereby supporting its stability-oriented course for at least two reasons. First, publishing minutes should induce a positive disciplinary incentive for (i) improving the quality of the internal discussion among Council members and (ii) counteracting any inclination on the part of Council members to deviate from a euro-wide oriented monetary policy. Second, minutes should help keeping a better balance of “influence power” between ECB Executive Board members and NCB presidents compared to the current status quo. The rationale for publishing minutes should increase in view of the foreseeable extension of the Governing Council due to the Eastward extension of the euro area and the envisaged reform of the Council’s voting modalities. Note that ECB Governing Council meeting minutes shall not necessarily attribute names to individual statements made in Council meetings; they shall serve to explain the ECB Council’s thoughts, discussions and decisions to the public.

Comment on: Sterling in Decline Again: The 1931 and 1992 Crises Compared

In their paper on the sterling crises of 1931 and 1992 Eichengreen and Hsieh offer an interesting hypothesis: Fundamentals can be regarded as focal points that determine the decline of sterling in the long run, but the severe crises of 1931 and 1992, caused by sudden shifts of investors’ expectations, can not be explained by these factors. In addition to the evolution of fundamentals like real exchange rates, unemployment rates, national debt, and the trade balance, two important factors caused the crises: international political and economic turmoil high (opportunity-) costs of defending the value of sterling.

Zur ökonomischen Analyse moralkonformen Handelns

Abstract His article deals with general features of moral behaviour from an economic perspective. Moral rules act as an enforcement mechanism replacing external sanctions with internal emotional sanctions such as guilt and shame. It is shown in many experiments and real life situations that morals influence the decision-making process and the outcomes. Moral attitudes help to overcome social dilemma situations if the actors’ intrinsic motivation is relatively high and if these moral attitudes are wide-spread. It is argued that to reject the moral dimension means to restrict the relevance of economic theory. This paper emphasizes the importance of moral behaviour and offers a simple model of the effects of morality.