Browsing by Subject "Transition economies"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2

Open Access
Central bank reform, liberalization and inflation in transition economies-an international perspective
(Elsevier BV, 2002) Cukierman, A.; Miller, G. P.; Neyapti, B.
This paper develops extensive new indices of legal independence (central bank indepedence (CBI) for new central banks (CBs) in 26 former socialist economies. The indices reveal that CB reform in the FSE during the 1990s has been quite ambitious. In spite of large price shocks, reformers in those countries chose to create CBs with levels of legal independence that are substantially higher, on average, than those of developed economies during the 1980s. The evidence in the paper shows that CBI is unrelated to inflation during the early stages of liberalization. But for sufficiently high and sustained levels of liberalization, and controlling for other variables, legal CBI and inflation are significantly and negatively related. These findings are consistent with the view that even high CBI cannot contain the initial powerful inflationary impact of price decontrols. But once the process of liberalization has gathered sufficient momentum legal independence becomes effective in reducing inflation. The paper also presents evidence on factors that affect the choice of CBI and examines the relation between inflation and CBI in a broader sample. © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Open Access
European integration, productivity growth and real convergence: evidence from the new member states
(Elsevier BV, 2009) Kutan, A. M.; Yigit, T. M.
We estimate the determinants of labor productivity growth in 8 new European Union (EU) member states that joined the Union in 2004. Our focus is on the impact of globalization and EU integration efforts on labor productivity growth. Previous studies test the impact of trade using either exports or trade openness. We also test the impact of imports separately on labor productivity growth. Using panel data for 1995-2006 period, we find that globalization has mixed effects. FDI and exports improve productivity, but imports hurt it. Regarding domestic variables, we find that human capital is the most important source of labor productivity growth in the new member states. There is also considerable adjustment of labor productivity towards EU15 levels, indicating significant "catching up" and hence real convergence. Policy implications of the findings are also discussed. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.