Segnalazioni da DG ECFIN e-news

Focus sulla crisi economica e finanziaria:

Commission’s economic governance proposals move closer to adoption
The Commission’s proposals for stronger economic governance have moved one step closer towards adoption. At their meeting on 15 February, European finance ministers held a discussion on the package of legislative proposals intended to strengthen economic governance in the EU, and more specifically in the euro area. The Council's intention is to agree on a general approach on all six proposals at its meeting on 15 March, with a view to reaching an agreement with the European Parliament in June. Ministers also pursued implementation of the European Semester which the Commission had launched with its first Annual Growth Survey (AGS) of 12 January. Based on the Commission recommendations for 10 priority actions, ministers adopted conclusions on policy guidelines to Member States to tackle macroeconomic and fiscal challenges.

Limited treaty change would allow establishment of a European stability mechanism
The European Commission has agreed that the Treaty should be amended before 2013 to allow for the establishment of a European stability mechanism to preserve the stability of the euro area. The Commission believes that the proposed amendment to Article 136 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the Union would not alter the competences of the European Union in any way. Therefore, the conditions are met for the change to be made through the simplified treaty amendment procedure. In his speech to the European Parliament of 15 February, Commission President Barroso said: “This decision is crucial for us to prove our determination to defend our common currency and guarantee financial stability in the face of some of the economic imbalances we've seen in some Member States – imbalances we need to remedy. This mechanism is essential in order to complete the Treaty framework."

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EU launches microfinance initiative to support small businesses
The European Commission launched the first EU microfinance project in the Netherlands jointly with the European Investment Fund (EIF) on 11 February. The project will allocate funds from several EU instruments to the Dutch microfinance institution Qredits. The funds are to facilitate the provision of microcredit of over EUR 20 million to small businesses or to people who have lost their jobs and want to start their own small businesses. The European Progress Microfinance Facility (Progress Microfinance) is a new initiative established with EUR 200 million of funding from the European Commission and the European Investment Bank Group. It aims to increase access to finance for micro-entrepreneurs, including the self-employed. Ninety-nine percent of start-ups in Europe are micro or small enterprises and one third of these are launched by people who are unemployed. 

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Food and Energy Prices, Government Subsidies and Fiscal Balances in South Mediterranean Countries This working paper focuses on the impact of soaring commodity prices, notably for food and energy, on the economies and public finances of Mediterranean neighbour countries of the EU. Just before the global crisis hit, soaring commodity prices pushed up inflation significantly in these countries, and impacted public finances, especially due to the cost of government food and fuel subsidies. Recently, commodity price pressures have re-emerged. The paper analyses recent developments in food inflation in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the occupied Palestinian territories, Syria and Tunisia in comparison with other middle income economies. Longer-term, challenges for public finances remain as inflation rises on the back of higher global economic growth. Moreover, as recent events in Tunisia illustrate, these can have important political implications.

Capital flows to converging European economies – from boom to drought and beyond, Occasional Paper 75

ECFIN Economic Briefs 12/2011. Reshaping the Chinese growth model – a formidable challenge of the 12th five-year plan