We examine economic convergence among euro area countries on multiple dimensions. While there was nominal convergence of inflation and interest rates, real convergence of per capita income levels has not occurred among the original euro area members since the advent of the common currency. Income convergence stagnated in the early years of the common currency and has reversed in the wake of the global economic crisis. New euro area members, in contrast, have seen real income convergence. Business cycles became more synchronized, but the amplitude of those cycles diverged. Financial cycles showed a similar pattern: sychronizing more over time, but with divergent amplitudes. Income convergence requires reforms boosting productivity growth in lagging countries, while cyclical and financial convergence can be enhanced by measures to improve national and euro area fiscal policies, together with steps to deepen the single market.
Are global city office markets inherently unstable? This examination of office markets in major world cities analyses the flows of capital that create urban form, the nature of ownership, investment and occupation and the impact of office markets on economic stability. Towers of Capital – office markets & international financial services explores the relationship between the evolution of major international financial centres as part of the global capital market system, the development of office markets in those cities, real estate investment in those office markets and the patterns of risk and return that result from the interactions between financial flows and office markets. Rather than focusing on just one single aspect of the relationship, Colin Lizieri sets out the interconnections between the location of financial activity, the processes operating in office markets and the volatility of real estate returns. The resulting schematic model of IFC office markets provides insights into risk and will act as a springboard for subsequent empirical work. Towers of Capital develops a framework for understanding real estate and the transformation of the built environment in financial centres, based both on the development of global capital markets and on micro-level research into the functioning of office markets. By drawing together the insights, models and ideas that address global capital flows, the evolution of city systems, office market processes and real estate finance, the book will help students and researchers in property and urban planning, investors and policy advisors to understand the linkages between the evolution of financial markets, innovation in commercial real estate markets and the dynamics of the office markets in global cities.
Routledge Handbook of the Economics of European Integration provides readers with a brief but comprehensive overview of topics related to the process of European integration in the post-World War II period. Its short chapters reflect the most up-to-date and concise research, written by a collective of experts on their own subjects. The aim of this book is twofold. Firstly, the text illustrates the broad and diverse range of issues associated with European integration, and lastly, the key approaches and findings are summarised. Since institutional integration in Europe is an ongoing process, with possibly frequent and sometimes rapid changes, the chapters are intended to focus on the key features of the economic analyses of these topics. A wide and diverse set of economic issues is of direct relevance for European integration. These topics cover various fields, ranging from the history of the European Economic and Monetary Union, EU Trade Policy and the stability of international trade, single market issues over fiscal, monetary and other policies, the crisis that faces the Euro area, and institutions such as EU Council of Ministers. Not surprisingly, many of these issues have also been analysed from a European perspective. This handbook is designed to provide students, researchers, the public and policy makers with ready and accessible knowledge of issues related to European integration and will provide the definitive overview of research in the area.
One of the key issues relating to the perfonnance of national economies is the efficiency of the financial system which stands at the heart of the capital-allocation process. There are two aspects which define efficiency. Static efficiency involves the ali-in difference between rates of return provided to ultimate savers and the cost of funds to users. This 'gap', or spread, reflects the direct costs of production (operating and administrative costs, cost of capital, etc.). It also reflects losses incurred in the financial process, as well as any monopoly profits earned and liquidity premiums. Financial processes that are considered 'statically inefficient' are usually characterised by high 'spreads' due to high overhead costs, high losses, barriers to entry, and the like. Dynamic efficiency is characterised by high rates of financial product and process innovation through time. Successful product and process innovation broadens the menu of financial products available to ultimate issuers, ultimate savers, or other agents along the various financial process channels described above. Probably the most powerful catalyst affecting the competitive dynamics of the financial services industry has been technological change.
This paper analyzes the structural implications of EMU for international capital markets. It discusses the potential size of euro capital markets and the existing roles of European currencies in international capital markets. The paper also examines the euro’s impact on international securities markets, including the role of the ECB, the evolution of EMU securities markets, and aspects of systemic risk management. The implications for wholesale and retail banking markets are also discussed, as are the broader implications of the introduction of the euro for changes in international capital flows, international portfolios, and by implication exchange rates.
The financial deregulation of the last quarter century has meantlarge flows of funds around the world seeking the highestrisk-adjusted return for investors. Real estate is now establishedas an important asset class and advances in information technologyprovide the necessary tools to complement global developments inreal estate finance and investment. A variety of investment vehicles have emerged, andReal EstateFinance in the New Economy examines these along withfinancing and risk in the context of globalization, deregulationand an increasingly integrated international world economy byexploring questions like: How have real estate financial structures evolved as economiesgrow and become internationalised? What role do economic change and financial systems play in thedevelopment of real estate investment? Are the risks associated with the ‘new economy’really new? What is the future direction for real estate financing? The authors develop an economic framework for discussions onindividual financial products to examine how real estate financialstructures change with economic growth and internationalisation andalso to show how developments in real estate finance impacteconomic growth.
From Fragmentation to Financial Integration in Europe is a comprehensive study of the European Union financial system. It provides an overview of the issues central to securing a safer financial system for the European Union and looks at the responses to the global financial crisis, both at the macro level—the pendulum of financial integration and fragmentation—and at the micro level—the institutional reforms that are taking place to address the crisis. The emerging financial sector management infrastructure, including the proposed Single Supervisory Mechanism and other elements of a banking union for the euro area, are also discussed in detail.
The fully revised and updated version of the leading textbook on real estate investment, emphasising real estate cycles and the availability and flow of global capital Real Estate Investment remains the most influential textbook on the subject, used in top-tier colleges and universities worldwide. Its unique, practical perspective on international real estate investment focusses on real-world techniques which measure, benchmark, forecast and manage property investments as an asset class. The text examines global property markets and real estate cycles, outlines market fundamentals and explains asset pricing and portfolio theory in the context of real estate. In the years since the text’s first publication, conditions in global real estate markets have changed considerably following the financial crisis of 2008-2009. Real estate asset prices have increased past pre-crisis levels, signalling a general market recovery. Previously scarce debt and equity capital is now abundant, while many institutions once averse to acquiring property are re-entering the markets. The latest edition – extensively revised and updated to address current market trends and practices as well as reflect feedback from instructors and students – features new content on real estate development, improved practical examples, expanded case studies and more. This seminal textbook: Emphasises practical solutions to real investing problems rather than complex theory Offers substantial new and revised content throughout the text Covers topics such as valuation, leasing, mortgages, real estate funds, underwriting and private and public equity real estate Features up-to-date sections on performance measurement, real estate debt markets and building and managing real estate portfolios Includes access to a re-designed companion website containing numerous problems and solutions, presentation slides and additional instructor and student resources Written by internationally-recognised experts in capital management and institutional property investing strategies, Real Estate Investment, Second Edition: Strategies, Structures, Decisions is an indispensable textbook for instructors and students of real estate fund management, investment management and investment banking, as well as a valuable reference text for analysts, researchers, investment managers, investment bankers and asset managers.
This edited collection assesses the level of financial integration in the European Union (EU) and the differences across the countries and segments of the EU financial system. Progress in financial integration is key to the EU’s economic growth and competitiveness and although it has advanced substantially, the process is still far from completion. This book focuses on the pace of financial integration in the EU with special emphasis on the new EU Member States and investigates their progress in comparison with ‘old’ EU countries. The book is the first of its kind to include and evaluate the effects of the global financial crisis on the process of EU financial integration. In particular, the book’s contributors address the issue of whether a high degree of financial integration contributed to the intensification of the financial crisis, or whether a low level of integration prevented countries and financial industries from some of the negative effects of the crisis. Although most of the chapters apply contemporary econometric tools, the technical part is always reduced to indispensable minimum and the emphasis is given to economic interpretation of the results. The book aims to offer an up to date and insightful examination of the process of financial integration in the EU today.
The European Community is negotiating a new treaty to establish the constitutional foundations of an economic and monetary union in the course of the 1990s. This study provides the only comprehensive guide to the economic implications of economic and monetary union. The work of an economist inside the Commission of the European Community, it reflects the considerations influencing the design of the union. The study creates a unique bridge between the insights of modern economic analysis and the work of the policy makers preparing for economic and monetary union.
