Since late 2021, European households’ gas and electricity bills have climbed to unprecedented levels. However, given the uncertainty of future Russian gas supplies and several other factors, the situation ahead does not look much rosier. How did we get here? And what...
Brueguel
East-west divergence in central bank action will not last much longer
This opinion piece was originally published in the Financial Times. The past few months have been characterised by an increasing divergence in monetary policy between big central banks in the west and those in Asia. Pushed by higher inflation than expected, the US...
The risks for Russia and Europe: how new sanctions could hit economic ties
Against the background of the build-up of troops along the Ukrainian border, Western countries are considering sanctions against Russia. Any new sanctions would come on top of those the West has introduced since Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Partly because of these...
How China’s investment in Middle East is evolving
Read the full opinion piece published by Asia Times.
Venture capital: a new breath of life for European entrepreneurship?
Worldwide, private equity investment grew by approximately 50% between 2019 and 2021 (Figure 1). Venture capital, in particular, has grown fastest, by a factor of more than three in value terms. In the United States and the European Union, venture capital grew by a...
China’s human capital problem
This episode is part of the ZhōngHuá Mundus series of The Sound of Economics. ZhōngHuá Mundus is a newsletter by Bruegel, bringing you monthly analysis of China in the world, as seen from Europe. Click to read all past editions of ZhōngHuá Mundus Sign up for the...
Does Europe need a Health Union?
The author is grateful for support and comments to Bruegel colleagues, in particular Miquel Oliu- Barton and Guntram Wolff, and to Fernand Sauer, former European Commission Director for Public Health. This Policy Contribution was prepared at the request of the French...
The puzzle of European Union recovery plan assessments
The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) is the largest component of Next Generation EU, the European Union’s landmark recovery and structural transformation instrument. EU countries must submit recovery and resilience plans, which are assessed by the European...
A new EU treaty to fight climate change
This piece was originally published in Money Review and is forthcoming in El Economista. The Maastricht treaty, signed thirty years ago this year, committed European Union countries to the greatest step in integration they’d so far taken. It established European...
Letter: The EU’s green taxonomy is a missed opportunity
Read the full letter published in the Financial Times.
A European climate fund or a green golden rule: not as different as they seem
There is a growing recognition that substantial public investment will be needed to meet the European Union’s climate targets. However, it will be impossible to increase green public investment while consolidating budget deficits when EU fiscal rules are reintroduced...
Maastricht at 30
This episode is recorded in collaboration with Studio Europa Maastricht. On 7 February 1992, twelve states signed the Maastricht Treaty, the foundation treaty of the European Union. As the treaty enters its 30s, what has it achieved? And where do we go from here?...