The Policy Response to Macroeconomic and Fiscal Imbalances in Italy in the Last Fifteen Years
39 Pages Posted: 4 Apr 2014
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The Policy Response to Macroeconomic and Fiscal Imbalances in Italy in the Last Fifteen Years
Date Written: November 22, 2013
Abstract
This paper reviews the main macroeconomic trends and the debate on policy priorities in Italy since the end of the Nineties. In the decade up to the outbreak of the global crisis (1998-2007), in Italy the reform process came to a virtual standstill; this is partly due to the fragmentation of the political constituency, while a variety of favourable contingent factors masked the difficulties of the productive system. Had Italy been better positioned in terms of public finances and structural features in 2007, some of the adverse effects of the global and sovereign crises would have been avoided.
Keywords: EMU, fiscal policy, macroeconomic imbalances, global crisis
JEL Classification: E6, H3, K0, N1
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation