Events for the Year 2006

Events for the Year 2006

Conferences, workshops and lunchtime briefings are indicated in RED. Participation is, however, limited. If you would like to obtain more information, please contact our meetings team.

Discussion meetings, however, are open and are indicated in BLUE. Please feel free to attend.

	27/1/2006		Third Conference of the RTN 'Trade, Industrialization and Development' , Chianti, Italy
			This is the third conference of the 'Trade, Industrialization and Development' RTN, funded by the European Commission. This Network seeks to understand the conditions under which countries succeed in participating effectively in the world economy, and are able to secure industrial development and modernisation. To achieve this objective the network will analyse the interactions between trade, industry, institutions and economic development, both from the theoretical and the empirical standpoint. Research will cover cross-country analysis, in-depth industry and country analyses, and policy analysis. This workshop will address these issues. This conference forms part of a Research Training Network (Contract No. HPRN-CT-2002-00236) funded through the Improving Human Potential activity of the European Commission's Fifth Framework Programme.

	13/2/2006		The Resolution of Global Imbalances , London
			In this CEPR Discussion Meeting, Francesco Giavazzi will examine the "global imbalances" that exist in the world economy today. He will look at the historically large U.S. current account deficit - 6.5% of GDP in 2005 - and the corresponding current account surpluses elsewhere in the world, in Asia and notably in China. Giavazzi will discuss how they have emerged, whether they are sustainable and possible scenarios for their resolution.

	27/2/2006		The Economic Impact of Oil Supply Shocks on the G7 Countries , London
			The possibility of an Iranian oil embargo is looming on the horizon. This raises the question, once more, of how shortfalls in crude oil production caused by wars and other political events in the Middle East affect oil prices, economic growth and inflation in major industrialized countries. Public discussion of this question has been shaped by the economic experience of the 1970s and early 1980s. Our collective memory leaves no doubt that oil supply shocks are to blame for the economic malaise of the 1970s. An obvious concern is that history might repeat itself if a new oil supply shock were to occur. Drawing on new evidence, Lutz Kilian will re-examine the effects of previous OPEC oil supply disruptions on the G7 countries. The questions to be addressed include: Do oil supply shocks cause a sustained increase in inflation? Can we expect a recession following such a shock? How long will it take for the recession to set in and how deep and protracted will it be? Do oil shocks by necessity cause 'stagflation', a term coined in the 1970s to denote periods of economic stagnation as well as inflation? The World Economy and Finance Research Programme (WEF) The World Economy and Finance Research Programme is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The aim of this research programme is twofold. One is to advance our understanding of ways in which financial markets and financial policies influence major global issues such as poverty, development, growth and transition. The second is to analyse policy issues in an era of low inflation, increasingly integrated financial markets, changing demographics and trade patterns. Programme Director: Professor John Driffill, School of Economics, Mathematics & Statistics, Birkbeck - University of London Malet Street London WC1E 7HX Tel: 020 7631 6417 www.worldeconomyandfinance.org

	1/3/2006		The Economic Impact of Oil Supply Shocks on the G7 Countries , Berlin


	3/3/2006		First Annual Workshop on the Macroeconomics of Global Interdependence , Gerzensee
			CEPR and the IMF are jointly organizing a one and a half day workshop focusing on global integration and economic interdependence. This workshop will take place under the auspices of the new CEPR Working Group on Macroeconomics of Global Interdependence (MGI). MGI aims to encourage academic research on macroeconomic aspects of global integration (broadly defined). Further information on MGI can be found at http://www.cepr.org/mgi

	6/3/2006		Euro Area Business Cycle Network Training School , Vienna
			Unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances this course has been postponed. A new course will be held in November; dates and other details will be announced shortly.

	9/3/2006		Second Meeting of the European Corporate Governance Training Network , Zurich
			The purpose of this conference is to consider alternative views and aspects of corporate governance. Empirical or theoretical submissions in financial economics, or law, on alternative models of corporate governance, comparative studies or anything related to corporate governance are welcome.

	17/3/2006		Adam Smith Asset Pricing (ASAP) Workshop, Spring Meeting , London
			The Adam Smith Asset Pricing (ASAP) Workshop will be hosted by the Financial Markets Group at LSE. The Workshops aim to increase interaction between people on all continents of our planet who share an interest in asset pricing theory and empirical work, and to give young researchers an opportunity to present their research and get early feedback on their work.

	17/3/2006		The Growth and Welfare Effects of Macroeconomic Volatility , Barcelona
			This conference will include the presentation and discussion of twelve papers and a closing panel on policy issues. It will serve to bring together researchers working on the long-run effects of macroeconomic volatility, with a particular emphasis on issues relevant to developing countries. The conference should increase our understanding on how development, or the lack thereof, shapes the effect that volatility may have on growth and welfare. The conference will include a combination of theoretical models, measurement analysis, and empirical results. Some of the questions to be addressed are the following: - Is volatility a source or a reflection of underdevelopment? What are the mechanisms through which volatility affects welfare? Is growth the main channel? - What are precisely the underdevelopment characteristics that put poor countries more at risk? Is it mainly lack of financial development, excessive government-imposed regulations, or lack of international integration? - Are economic crises the real culprit behind volatility�s negative effect on growth and welfare? - What are the most productive and conceptually sensible ways to measure and model macroeconomic volatility and its effects on growth and welfare? - What policies and institutional safeguards can be implemented to deal with macroeconomic volatility and, in particular, with external and domestic crises?

	24/3/2006		Science, Innovation and Growth in Europe , London
			Science, Innovation and Growth are now common terms in both the media and in public policy debates. Yet a comprehensive understanding of science, innovation and growth, and the relationships among them, is still elusive. To advance our understanding, we need both theoretical and applied research that spans different fields in economics: microeconomics (the economics of ideas; firms' innovation and their dynamics; competition and innovation, etc.); macroeconomics (aggregate growth); and the international dimension (international flows of highly skilled workers, the international diffusion of technologies). To enhance our understanding of these issues CEPR has launched a new research initiative on "Science, Innovation and Growth" (SING). With support from HM Treasury, we are organizing a one-day workshop in London on Friday 24 March, at which several researchers from the SING initiative will take stock of the current state of our knowledge in four key areas: � The internationalisation of science and technology � Industry-science links � Patents and intellectual property rights � The economic environment for innovation The workshop will conclude with a panel session, which will draw out the policy implications of the research discussed in the first four sessions. The panel session will also address issues such as the "policy mix" for science, innovation and growth, the allocation of policy responsibility in Europe across the EU, national and regional levels. Our aim is to bring together a small and group of leading researchers and policy-makers, to provide assessments of what we know from current research, and then move to a focused discussion between researchers and policy-makers about the implications of current research for policy, and looking forward, priorities for research and policy.

	1/4/2006		Joint Conference CEPR-BREAD-EBRD , Tokyo
			The Institutions and Economic Performance Programme is organizing jointly with the Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (B.R.E.A.D.) (chair Tim Besley) an international conference in the framework of an EBRD sponsored program on "Institutional Development, Market Integration and Growth� The conference will bring together about forty participants for a period of three days. The conference aims to create a forum for leading researchers to present new research on comparative institutions and development. On days 3 and 4, policy panels on the topics of the programme will be held.

	10/4/2006		Public Private Partnership and Deregulation in Infrastructure Services , India
			The workshop will focus on public-private partnership (PPPs) in building economic infrastructure. PPPs have been promoted as an alternative, between public provision and privatization, aiming at combining the potential strengths of both. It will also focus on regulation of infrastructure industry that will maximize the welfare gains to the economy while enabling public-private partnerships (PPPs) to succeed wherever they are necessary. This workshop is organised as part of the project "Efficiency, Equity and Access in Indian Infrastructure - Blending Competition and Regulation". The project is a collaboration between the National Centre for Infrastructure and Regulation (NCAER), India, CEPR, IDEI and ECARES. It is funded by the ECCP programme of the European Union.

	21/4/2006		Economic Policy Panel , Vienna


	24/4/2006		GAMS Course and Young Researchers' Meeting on 'Trade, Industrialisation and Development' (Research Training Network) , Rotterdam
			Please note that this event will be split into two parts: a GAMS course (24 April - 27 April) and a YR meeting (28 April).

	28/4/2006		CEPR/IIIS Trinity College Dublin Workshop , Dublin
			The workshop theme is organized jointly with the Institute for International Integration Studies at Trinity College Dublin. "Evaluating the Impact of Globalization on Productivity Dynamics and Labour Market Outcomes " will feature papers on research techniques and results relating to following topics: -Estimation of Production Functions -Productivity and Reallocation Effects -Productivity and Competition -Productivity and Trade

	12/5/2006		The Economics of Labour Market Relations , Bergen
			The CEPR Public Policy programme in co-operation with the University of Bergen and the Institute for Research in Economics and Business Administration, Bergen will host a conference in Bergen, Norway on the economics of labour market relations. The organizers aim for a broad approach to the topic. Empirical and theoretical contributions are equally welcome. Possible topics include: -Career paths and hierarchies in firms -Pay structures -Organisational change -Gender, family and labour -Work in non-profit organisations -Social norms in the labour market -Internal labour markets -Unions, labour market institutions and within-firm decisions -Globalisation and the organisation of labour

	17/5/2006		Third CEPR Applied IO School , Funchal, Madeira
			This school is preceding the Seventh CEPR Conference on Applied IO. PhD students and young researchers will have the opportunity to present their papers. After the school, all participants will have the opportunity to attend the Applied IO conference.

	18/5/2006		Seventh CEPR Conference on Applied Industrial Organization: Network Industry Structure, Investment and Competition in the New Economy , Portugal
			In emphasising the importance of the dynamics of economic systems, this series of CEPR conferences on Applied Industrial Organisation aims to move the frontiers of research in the domain of the 'new economy' and the knowledge society, a set of key developments which gathered momentum at the turn of the 21st century. More specifically, the series aims to contribute to an analytical understanding of the issues raised by the new economy and their impacts on the wealth of economies and peoples, develop empirical protocols and tests of economic models, promote the exchange and the dissemination of results at the forefront of research, and finally, re-evaluate current competition and regulation policies.

	19/5/2006		Bubbles - Theory, Policy Implications and Historical Perspectives , Barcelona
			With support from the Centre de Recerca en Economia Internacional (CREI) at UPF, Barcelona, and CEPR�s Economic History Initiative, this workshop aims to bring together economists, economic historians and political scientists working on bubbles in asset markets. It will provide a forum for discussion of recent research about the appropriate policy responses to bubbles. Some of the possible topics include: - Can asset price bubbles be beneficial? - What is the evidence of cognitive biases and mistaken beliefs contributing to periods of overvaluation? - How large are house price bubbles � and should monetary policy be used to do something about them? - To what extent do bubbles matter for macroeconomic activity? - What do we learn from historical bubble episodes about the factors driving them?

	24/5/2006		European Summer Symposium in International Macroeconomics (ESSIM) 2006 , Tarragona
			The fourteenth CEPR European Summer Symposium in International Macroeconomics (ESSIM) will take place on 24-28 May 2006. The meeting will be hosted by Banco de Espa�a in Tarragona. ESSIM is an annual meeting that brings together about 60 economists from across Europe and key researchers from outside the region. It provides a unique opportunity for macroeconomists from different universities and countries to discuss research in a relaxed atmosphere and to develop long-term collaborative relationships. Another important aim of ESSIM is to provide young researchers with the opportunity to meet and discuss their work with senior economists.

	28/5/2006		Second Summer School of the 'European Network for the Advancement of Behavioural Economics' (Marie Curie Research Training Network), hosted by University of Munich and University of Zurich , Munich
			The University of Munich and the University of Zurich will be hosting the Summer Institute on Economics and Psychology from 29 May to 6 June 2006. The Summer Institute will take place in conjunction with the European Symposium on Economics and Psychology supported by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and the European Network for the Advancement of Behavioural Economics (ENABLE). The Summer Institute is therefore organised in two halves: the first half on 29 May to 31 May, followed by the three-day conference (1-3 June), and the second half on 4-6 June. The summer school will provide a wide-ranging introduction to Behavioral Economics and Economic Psychology, intended primarily for Ph.D. students, post-docs and beginning faculty in Economics and Psychology.

	2/6/2006		Second Meeting of the 'European Network for the Advancement of Behavioural Economics' (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Munich
			The three-day conference aims to bring together about 30 scholars from Europe and the US working on the intersection of economics and psychology in a broad sense. Topics include (but are not restricted to): identity and self perception, discounting, memory and anticipation, values and moral sentiments, self-regulation, neuro-economics, cognition, emotions and decision-making, communication.

	3/6/2006		The International Competitiveness of the European Economy: How Sectors and Firms Have Adjusted to the New International Environment (ISIT) , Stockholm
			The purpose of this two-day workshop is to provide an in depth assessment of how European countries have adapted to the new technological and international environment, focusing both on the sectoral and the firm responses. To this purpose, the workshop will feature a number of papers, based mainly on firm-level surveys, with a view to investigating the process of internationalisation of firms� activities, being it exports, imports, foreign investment or international subcontracting. By providing a comparative overview on the international activities of firms the workshop should contribute to advance our knowledge in this key area. At a later stage, a comparison will be made with U.S. developments at the CEPR/NBER International Seminar on International Trade.

	5/6/2006		Fourth EABCN Training School: Bayesian Methods for DSGE Models and VARs , Eltville
			The course focuses on the estimation and evaluation of dynamic stochastic equilibrium (DSGE) models and vector autoregressions (VAR). The course is organized around empirical methods: Bayesian inference, estimation of DSGE models, posterior odds comparisons and predictive checks, estimation and identification of VARs, comparing and combining DSGE models and VARs. The methods are applied to neoclassical stochastic growth models and New Keynesian monetary DSGE models. Applications include, but are not limited to the following issues: estimation of monetary policy rules, the effects of technology shocks and unanticipated changes in monetary policy in estimated VARs and DSGE models, the sensitivity of parameter estimates to prior distributions, forecasting with vector autoregressions and DSGE models. Professor Frank Schorfheide, from University of Pennsylvania, will teach the course. It is primarily aimed at participants in the Euro Area Business Cycle Network (EABCN) but applications will also be considered from doctoral students and post-doctoral researchers, and from economists working for commercial organizations (for which a fee will be charged). The course will consist of five days lectures and practical classes. The objective is to introduce the students to the topics and enable them to extend and apply the new methods and analyses.

	6/6/2006		24th CEPR Economic Policy Roundtable , London
			The CEPR Economic Policy Roundtable provides a forum in which leaders from the corporate sector discuss the issues arising at the semi-annual European Council meetings. It brings together CEPR Corporate Members, major funders and Research Fellows with high-level policy-makers from the European Commission and elsewhere, to discuss economic issues that will feature on the European Council agenda and to communicate views on these issues to European policy-makers.

	11/6/2006		Outsourcing and International Fragmentation of Production - Implications for Developing Countries. Fifth Summer School in �Trade, Industrialisation and Development� (Research Training Network) , Gargnano
			The school intends to provide an intensive training course for young research students and scholars who are working in the fields of international economics and development. This year it will focus on the main analytical and empirical approaches to study international fragmentation of production. In particular it will examine whether and how vertical specialization, outsourcing and off-shoring can play a key-role in promoting trade, industrialisation and development of less advanced countries. The school is open to 40 students from all countries. Students are expected to attend the school full time. The lecturers are Kei-Mu Yi of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, and Giorgio Barba Navaretti of the University of Milano and Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, two of the leading economists working in this field. The school is organised as part of the Research Training Network on 'Trade Industrialisation and Development', which is funded by the European Commission through the Improving Human Potential action of its Fifth Framework Programme (EC Contract No. HPRN-CT-2002-00236).

	12/6/2006		Foundations of Corporate Governance. First Summer School of the �European Corporate Governance Training Network� (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Amsterdam
			The Summer School has succeeded in attracting a group of top researchers whose work on corporate governance, from an economic, legal and political perspective has been most influential. The aims of the school is to build on cutting edge thinking in the main discliplinary approaches to corporate governance which helps us to understand the nature of corporate governance systems across the world, their merits and limits, and their variation over time. The school is organised as part of the ECGTN Research Training Network funded under the EU's Sixth Framework Programme. The network aims to contribute to the development of a European-wide research network on corporate governance, its causes and consequences.

	15/6/2006		Conference of the Network: Macroeconomic Policy Design for Monetary Unions , DNB
			De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB), the University of Amsterdam (UvA), and CEPR are organizing a Research Conference on "Monetary and Fiscal Stabilization with Imperfect Financial Markets", to be held at DNB in Amsterdam on June 15-16, 2006. This is the final conference of the "Macroeconomic Policy Design for Monetary Union" (MAPMU) Research Training Network, funded under the European Commission�s 6th Framework Human Potential programme. The conference is aimed at addressing issues pertaining to macroeconomic stabilization via monetary and fiscal policy. Particular attention should therefore be paid to the role of financial market imperfections and of country-specific risk for macroeconomic policy. Topics include: - Monetary transmission under financial frictions - Financial integration and macroeconomic stabilization - Capital Markets and stabilization of country specific shocks - Role of institutions in macroeconomic stabilization - Macroeconomic policy coordination in a monetary union We intend to bring together economists from central banks, universities and other institutions who are actively engaged in researching these issues.

	15/6/2006		Mid-Term Review Meeting of 'The Economics of Education and Education Policy in Europe' (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Padova
			This is the Mid Term Review of this Research Training Network with the European Commission. The progress of the project so far will be presented and discussed with the European Commission. Each young researcher will give a short presentation of their experience with the network so far.

	15/6/2006		European Research Workshop on International Trade (ERWIT) , Vienna
			ERWIT is an annual workshop that brings together international economists from across Europe and key researchers from outside the region. It provides a unique opportunity to discuss research in a relaxed atmosphere. The meeting will disseminate the findings of recent research on international trade, and presentations often involve exploratory rather than finished papers. The programme runs for four days (from Thursday afternoon until Sunday). The programme will combine workshop sessions with time for collaboration and consultation. (To this end, facilities will also be made available for collaborative research.) Another important aim of ERWIT is to provide young researchers with the opportunity to meet and discuss their work with senior economists. Paper proposals are invited on any trade-related issue.

	16/6/2006		First Summer School of 'The Economics of Education and Education Policy in Europe' (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Padova
			The school is targeted to doctorate and post-doctorate students in economics and related disciplines. Topics covered during the summer school will include school quality, teacher incentives, school choice and competition.

	21/6/2006		The Need for Institutional Changes in the Global Financial System , CEPR, London
			The international financial system has been the subject of much debate following the financial crises of the 1990s. While many reforms have been proposed for and implemented by mostly developing countries, few changes have been made to the international financial system itself. Fundamentally, the design, institutions, and governance of the international system remain very similar to those of two decades ago. In this paper, Stijn Claessens and Geoffrey Underhill analyze the causes and consequences of the failure to reform. They highlight the forces driving the need for changes in the governance of the international financial system, in particular the combination of the global integration processes and the increased role of the private sector. This study then provides insights into the desirable institutional structure for international financial decision-making.

	23/6/2006		ESF Exploratory Workshop on Designing Partnerships Between Government And The Private Sector: Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives , Bristol
			The privatisation-regulation model and the traditional public sector delivery model represent two extremes for delivery of public services. Between these there are many others where governments maintain a far more intimate, complex, ongoing, and subtle relationship with private or public providers. Whatever the form of delivery the nature of the services, the ethical norms and values surrounding public services and their delivery, the political climate, and the institutions will all affect the relationship between government and provider, the governance process, the appropriate institutional structure, and its success and failure. The analysis and understanding of these relationships is the theme of the conference.

	23/6/2006		In or Out: Does it Matter? An Evidence Based Analysis of the Trade Effects of the Euro , BERR, London
			Economics played little role in the decision to create the euro � politics was king. Going forward, however, economics moves to centre stage and the trade effects of the euro are at the heart of many issues, ranging from synchronization of business cycles to the benefits of euro area membership. In this talk, Richard Baldwin presents the findings of his new CEPR Report that marshals the best available empirical evidence on the size and nature of the euro's pro-trade effect. One of the findings is that being 'in' versus 'out' of the euro area has less impact on trade flows than previously thought. This is due to the fact that euro area membership has acted like a unilateral trade liberalization by the 'ins', which boosted their imports from the 'outs' almost as much as their imports from fellow euro-users.

	27/6/2006		Long-Run Growth in Europe, 1000-2000. First Summer School of 'Unifying the European Experience' (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Florence
			In recent years, there has been a burgeoning interest on the part of the economics profession in economic growth, including the question of what determines economic growth rates over the very long run (i.e. centuries or more). While economists have developed a series of models trying to understand the mechanisms involved in shifting the European economy from a relatively low growth regime (usually characterised as 'Malthusian') to a regime of high and sustained levels of growth (usually characterised as the 'modern' growth regime), economic historians have made major advances in documenting the basic facts about long run economic growth which such theories should seek to explain. Since understanding long run growth has always been one of the core activities of our field, these trends in modern growth economics offer a welcome opportunity for economic historians to make an impact on the economics profession more generally. The lead speaker for this conference, Gregory Clark, is one of the most influential economic historians working in this area today, and is the author of a series of path-breaking papers extending our empirical understanding of economic growth back into medieval times. Along with other speakers at this summer school, he has been actively engaged in challenging growth economists' stylised facts, as well as their preferred explanations. This summer school will seek to introduce students to the current research frontier in this area. The school forms part of the activities of the Research Training Network 'Unifying the European Experience: Historical Lessons of Pan-European Development' and is funded under the EU's Sixth Framework Programme (Contract No. MRTN-CT-2004-512439). It is co-organised by the ESF Research Networking Programme GLOBALEURONET.

	28/6/2006		In or Out: Does it Matter? An Evidence Based Analysis of the Euro. , Berlin
			Economics played little role in the decision to create the euro � politics was king. Going forward, however, economics moves to centre stage and the trade effects of the euro are at the heart of many issues, ranging from synchronization of business cycles to the benefits of euro area membership. In this talk, Richard Baldwin presents the findings of his new CEPR Report that marshals the best available empirical evidence on the size and nature of the euro's pro-trade effect. One of the findings is that being 'in' versus 'out' of the euro area has less impact on trade flows than previously thought. This is due to the fact that euro area membership has acted like a unilateral trade liberalization by the 'ins', which boosted their imports from the 'outs' almost as much as their imports from fellow euro-users.

	3/7/2006		European Summer Symposium in Economic Theory (ESSET) 2006 , Gerzensee
			Fifty economists will meet for two weeks from 3 July at the Study Center Gerzensee in Switzerland. The Symposium is organized by CEPR jointly with the Study Center, a foundation of the Swiss National Bank. At ESSET 2006, there will be two half-day workshops, one each week. The workshops in the first week will be on The Economics of Social Networks with Matthew Jackson, Andrea Galeotti, Sanjeev Goyal, Fernando Vega-Redondo, Leeat Yariv, Garance Genicot, Francis Bloch, Shachar Kariv, Douglas Gale and Syngioo Choi. In the second week the workshops will be on Boundedly Rational Beliefs in Games with Ran Spiegler, Ariel Rubinstein, Pierpaolo Battigalli, Martin Dufwenberg and Muhamet Yildiz. The Organizing Committee of ESSET 2006 consists of Philippe Bacchetta, Antoni Calv�-Armengol (co-ordinator first week), Leonardo Felli (chairman), Patrick Legros, Margaret Meyer, Andrea Prat (co-ordinator second week), Patrick Rey and Xavier Vives.

	17/7/2006		European Summer Symposium in Financial Markets (ESSFM) 2006 , Gerzensee
			The seventeenth CEPR/ Gerzensee European Summer Symposium in Financial Markets (ESSFM) will take place in Gerzensee from 17 to 28 July 2006. The Organizing Committee for this conference consists of: Philippe Bacchetta (Gerzensee, Universit� de Lausanne and CEPR), Magnus Dahlquist (Swedish Institute for Financial Research and CEPR) and David Thesmar (HEC School of Management and CEPR). The meeting will include daily seminars in the morning, in which participants present their work, as well as less formal evening seminars scheduled at the beginning of the Symposium. A substantial amount of time is reserved for independent work and collaborative research, which provides participants with a unique opportunity to interact and discuss each other's research. In addition, five mornings will be devoted to 'focus sessions', each of which concentrates on some recent developments in corporate finance (week one) and asset pricing (week two). The focus sessions in the corporate finance week will be organised by Bruno Biais (Universit� des Sciences Sociales de Toulouse and CEPR), Antoinette Schoar (Massachusetts Institute of Technology and CEPR) and David Yermack (New York University Stern School of Business). Focus sessions of the asset pricing week will be organized by Albert 'Pete' Kyle (Duke University) and Pietro Veronesi (University of Chicago and CEPR).

	27/7/2006		Dealing with the New Giants: Rethinking the Role of Pension Funds , London
			Pension funds are becoming the largest institutional investors in global financial markets. They help individuals save for their old age and protect the value of their pensions. However, pension funds operate in an environment characterised by a number of serious market imperfections - poor financial education of investors and managers, informational asymmetries, imperfect labour markets, and potential supply and demand imbalances in financial markets. This eighth CEPR\ICMB Geneva Report on the World Economy takes a stance on a number of controversial issues concerning the future of pension funds. For example, the authors argue for harmonisation of accounting standards based on mark-to-market principles and better reporting to individuals about their accumulated pension rights, on the basis of the Swedish "orange envelope" system. The thrust of the recommendations is to avoid a scenario in which public sector pension systems crowd out private funded savings for retirement and private sector pension funds shed all risk to banks and to governments.

	25/8/2006		CEPR Annual Reception at the EEA-ESEM Congress 2006 , Vienna


	28/8/2006		Barriers to Entry and to Expansion in the Developing World: The Role of Institutional Constraints , Amsterdam
			This workshop will seek a highly interactive exchange seeking common ground between the themes of poverty and the role of access to finance in development. Firms in the developing world face a myriad set of constraints in both the start-up phase, and early stages of expansion. Many new enterprises live in the murky world of the underground economy, and suffer additional barriers to further expansion. We are interested in work, both empirical and theoretical, that examines this set of barriers to establishment and growth. Possible areas include, but are not limited to: � Government regulation � Access to finance � Human capital access � Corruption � The economics of the informal sector On the empirical side, we are particularly interested in work that makes effective use of micro-level datasets that convincingly address these questions. A specific goal is to promote young researchers engaged in finance and development studies and to connect them with the BREAD network in development economics, so far mostly active in the US.

	29/8/2006		Estimation and Empirical Validation of Structural Models for Business Cycle Analysis (EABCN Workshop) , Zurich
			The EABCN/CEPR workshops aim at bringing together the latest advances in theoretical and empirical analysis of business cycles from researchers in both academia and central banks. The seventh workshop will be devoted to the presentation of papers that focus on estimation and evaluation of dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) models. We are interested in newly developed inferential tools, as well as empirical applications where existing methods are used in a novel way. We welcome papers which compare different methods or algorithms for estimating DSGE models; which focus on identification issues in DSGE models and which develop econometric tools for empirical validation. On the empirical side we are mainly interested in papers that provide new evidence, or a new perspective, on national and international business cycles, cross country dynamics of inflation and the dynamics of exchange rates.

	1/9/2006		NBP/CEPR/ESI Annual Conference on 'Globalisation and Monetary Policy' , Warsaw
			The topic of the 10th CEPR/ESI Annual Conference will be �Globalization and Monetary Policy' and will cover the following sub-areas: (1) impact of globalization on monetary policy (with special emphasis on the following channels: product markets, labour markets, non-financial and financial services), (2) implications of global imbalances for monetary policy, (3) modelling monetary policy under globalization. The intention is to have three policy lectures by senior central bankers. Furthermore, there will be a panel session of commercial bank analysts and representatives of international institutions. Finally, the conference will be closed with three survey papers on modelling monetary policy under globalization.

	11/9/2006		Training Workshop: Introduction to Computable General Equilibrium Modeling with GAMS and MPS/GE , Copenhagen
			Instructors Professor James R. Markusen, University of Colorado and CEPR, and Dr. Jesper Jensen, TECA TRAINING Objective The workshop will provide an introduction to applied (numerical) general equilibrium models constructed using GAMS and MPS/GE. The workshop addresses beginners. No previous knowledge of modeling is assumed, but knowledge of applied microeconomics (Master's level) is very important. This workshop is intended for researchers, policy makers and consultants who want to do policy analysis with real data and for researchers who are interested in using numerical modeling for simulation analysis of theoretical models. Course Content All workshop sessions will include a brief lecture, presentation of simple template models, and exercises. Both instructors will be available during the entire workshop. The workshop will also provide an opportunity for specialized consultation on individual applications in international trade, tax and climate policy analysis.

	14/9/2006		European Summer Symposium in Labour Economics 2006 (ESSLE) , Ammersee
			ESSLE is designed to bring together labour economists from across Europe and key researchers from outside the region. The symposium provides a unique opportunity for researchers from different universities and countries to discuss their work in a relaxed atmosphere and to develop long-term collaborative relationships. Another important aim of ESSLE is to provide young researchers with the opportunity to meet and discuss their work with senior economists.

	14/9/2006		Mid-Term Review Meeting of the European Corporate Governance Training Network (Marie Curie Training Network) , Venice
			This is the Mid-Term Review of the ECGTN network with the European Commission. The progress of the project so far will be presented and discussed with the European Commission. Each young researcher will give a short presentation of their experience with the network so far.

	16/9/2006		ESF Exploratory Workshop on Outsourcing, Migration and the European Economy , Rome
			The links between trade, FDI, outsourcing and migration have become increasingly complex. First, policies towards international trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) have become increasingly liberal while immigration policies have remained quite restrictive, particularly with respect to unskilled workers. Moreover, in response to the growing shortage of skills, certain industrialised countries have begun to favour the entry of skilled workers. Given that FDI and outsourcing appear to be more prevalent in host countries with deep pools of skilled workers, these policy developments may have a strong bearing on the link between migration and foreign investment. The link between trade and FDI, particularly in developing and emerging markets, has also changed. Market access considerations are no longer predominant and the investment decisions of international firms seem to be driven increasingly by the desire to reduce production-related costs. In this context, trade costs no longer encourage multinational firms to invest abroad with a view to gaining better access to foreign consumers. On the contrary, they diminish the incentive to invest abroad in the first place. The purpose of this workshop is to bring together international economists, migration experts, labour economists, business school and industry experts and political scientists to discuss the theoretical underpinnings and the main empirical regularities of the links between trade, FDI, outsourcing and migration. Although the workshop will have a strong focus on implications for the European economy, research, and policymaking, the international nature of the subject matter will inevitably mean that the presented research will have implications for developing and transition economies too. The programme will be assembled by a scientific committee composed of Giorgio Barba Navaretti, Simon Evenett and Riccardo Faini. Sponsored by the European Science Foundation ESF Co-organised by the Centre for Economic Policy Research CEPR, the University of Rome Tor Vergata, and the Centro Studi Luca d�Agliano

	28/9/2006		Transparency in European Bond Markets , London
			In this CEPR/FSA Discussion Meeting, Richard Portes will present the findings of two Reports, entitled "European Corporate Bond Markets: Transparency, Liquidity, Efficiency" and "European Government Bond Markets: Transparency, Liquidity, Efficiency". The Reports are intended to inform input into the European Commission�s review of non-equity market transparency required by the European Commission�s review of bond market transparency, required by MiFID (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive) and due to be completed by November 2007. Both studies present original quantitative and qualitative analysis of these previously under-researched markets. The presentation will be followed by a question and answer session with the audience. Background on the research: The research was commissioned to seek answers to a range of questions relevant to a comprehensive regulatory review of market transparency, including: - Do European bond markets deliver efficient market outcomes? - To the extent that outcomes are not efficient, could improved pre-and /or post-trade transparency improve bond market efficiency? - To what extent will increased transparency occur as part of the natural evolution of bond markets? - To what extent can market participants be encouraged to develop their own solutions and what can only be achieved by direct regulatory intervention? This research was commissioned in the form of two independent studies. One concentrated on the European corporate bond markets; the other on European government bond markets.

	29/9/2006		Transforming European Pension Systems , London
			The Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and the Network for Studies on Aging and Retirement (Netspar) are jointly organizing a conference with the principal objective of promoting research on the effect of the aging population in Europe, the transformation of the pension system and bringing together academics and practitioners in the field. Papers that study issues in the transformation of European pension systems will be presented. Topics relevant to the conference include: - Pension research in general - Labour markets and pension decisions - Pensions and financial markets - New tools for studying pension system reform (eg surveys such as SHARE) The programme committee consists of Tito Boeri (University of Bocconi and CEPR), Monika Buetler (University of St. Gallen and CEPR) and Kees Koedijk (Erasmus University Rotterdam, CEPR and Netspar).

	13/10/2006		European Growth and Integration since the Mid-Nineteenth Century. Second Conference of 'Unifying the European Experience: Historical Lessons of Pan-European Development' (Marie Curie Research Training Network) , Lund
			This is the Second conference of the UEE network. The goal of this network is to contribute to the development of a truly European economic history profession, by analysing the economic development of Europe as a whole. The network will collect pan-European data for two time-scales, the long run (i.e. the past 150 years), and the very long run (i.e. the past 1000 years). It will use up-to-date economic techniques, both theoretical and econometric, to analyse these data and provide accounts of European growth, European economic integration, and the changing nature of Europe's economic relationships with the rest of the world, in the long run and very long run. For this event, submissions were invited for the research themes "European Growth from the Mid-Nineteenth Century" and "The History of European Integration"

	13/10/2006		Third Conference of the EEEPE Network , Paris
			This is the third conference of an EU Marie Curie Research and Training Network on the Economics of Education and Education Policy in Europe. The organizers are Hans Bonesr�nning, Edwin Leuven and Steve Machin. The Conference will address issues in all areas of the Economics of Education and Education Policy. Examples of specific research areas are: - Education and Inequality - Pupil Performance and School Resources - The Labour Market for Teachers - Gender Differences in Educational Attainment - International Differences in Education Systems The organizers would like to acknowledge the support of the European Commission's Sixth Framework Programme under contract number MRTM-CT-2003-504796.

	20/10/2006		Economic Policy Panel , Helsinki


	26/10/2006		Final Conference of the Research Training Network "Trade, Industrialisation and Development" , Paris
			This research project seeks to understand the conditions under which countries succeed in participating effectively in the world economy, and are able to secure industrial development and modernisation. To achieve this objective the network will analyse the interactions between trade, industry, institutions and economic development, both from the theoretical and the empirical standpoint. Research will cover cross-country analysis, in-depth industry and country analyses, and policy analysis. This workshop will address these issues. The meeting is funded by the European Commission�s Fifth Framework Programme (Contract No. HPRN-CT-2002-00236)

	27/10/2006		14th WZB Conference on Markets and Politics and 4th Workshop of the RTN: Competition Policy in International Markets: Antitrust and Innovation , Berlin
			The WZB (in tandem with CEPR) will hold its 14th conference on Markets and Politics on October 27-28, 2006 in Berlin. This will be held in conjunction with the 4th workshop of the Research Training Network: Competition Policy in International Markets, which is supported by the European Community�s Human Potential Programme (EC Contract no. HPRN-CT-2002-00224, CPIM). During this conference, we intend to provide a forum for international researchers and network members to present and discuss work concerning the links between antitrust and innovation. Invited speakers include Michael Katz (Berkeley) While innovation and cooperation among firms, such as mergers and research joint ventures, are important drivers of firms� efficiency, market performance, and welfare, they can also have detrimental effects by creating and strengthening a dominant position, which can be illegally abused. This conference aims to enhance our understanding on the interplay between firms� innovation activity and their cooperation in the product market with a special focus on policy implications. In particular: How do market structure, market power, mergers and vertical integration affect firms� innovation policy? How do R&D and innovation affect firms� incentive to merge and how does it affect market structure and firms� performance? How should antitrust enforcement handle the issues related to dynamic efficiency? Should innovation policy be concerned about anticompetitive behaviour? We invite submissions of theoretical, empirical, as well as experimental papers related to the following topics: � Mergers and innovation incentives � Innovation and market power � The role of efficiencies in (vertical) mergers � Innovation and vertical integration � Dynamic efficiency and antitrust � Interplay between antitrust and innovation policy

	2/11/2006		7th Annual Bank of Finland/CEPR Conference: Credit and the Macroeconomy , Helsinki
			An increasingly important research agenda in macroeconomics has been to analyze the relationship between the business cycle and the condition of firms' and households' balance sheets. The focus of this research has mainly been to study the way in which exogenous shocks may be amplified through the financial system, whereas the related idea, much entertained by earlier macroeconomic thinking, that the financial system may itself be a source of endogenous volatility has received relatively less attention. On the other hand, having experienced the advances in quantitative business cycle modelling, many macroeconomists as well as policy-makers strongly feel there is an urgent need to incorporate elements from modern financial market research, which emphasizes the implications of, in particular, informational asymmetries, into standard dynamic business cycle models. The financial sector in the latter models is more often than not highly simplified, so that the macroeconomic implications of important questions related to the way agents finance their activities, have access to financial markets and choose their contractual arrangements, cannot be easily analyzed with the help of these models. We encourage research on the relationship between the financial structure and the macroeconomic performance of the economy and invite papers on the macroeconomic implications of credit markets and financial market imperfections. We in particular encourage research on - Credit markets and business cycles - Financial propagation - Endogenous credit cycles and financial dampening - Financial market imperfections and quantitative business cycle modelling.

	6/11/2006		CEPR Annual Public Policy Symposium 2006 , Kiel
			This conference will be the seventh programme meeting of the Public Policy programme. Its goal is to provide a forum for high quality work in public economics and to bring together economists in the field from across Europe and key researchers from outside the region. Papers are invited in any area of public economics (including political economy and public policy issues in general). The conference hopes to provide a unique opportunity for researchers from different universities and countries to discuss their work in a relaxed atmosphere and to develop long-term collaborative relationships. It also aims to provide young researchers with the opportunity to meet and discuss their work with senior economists.

	6/11/2006		EUDN/CEPR Conference on Development Economics , Paris
			EUDN (European Development Research Network) and the newly created CEPR Development Economics Program are joining forces this year to organize a joint Conference on Development Economics funded by the Agence Fran�aise de D�veloppement. The conference organizers are Jean-Philippe Platteau, Jan Willem Gunning, Robin Burgess, and Esther Duflo. The selection committee is composed of Jean-Marie Baland, Robin Burgess, Esther Duflo and Eliana La Ferrara. The format will be a two-day event during which a selection of papers will be presented and discussed at length. No specific theme is set: all that is required is that the papers fall into the domain of what is today understood as development economics. Conference participants are expected to play an active role in the discussion throughout the conference.

	23/11/2006		Second Economic History Panel: Past, Present and Policy , London
			The PPP Economic History Panel is a project that is jointly sponsored by the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris and CEPR. Its motivation is the considerable advances that Economic History has achieved in the past, and the growing recognition of its contribution to shape policy responses. Moreover, since Economic History does not speak with one single voice, it is important that alternative views about policy lessons be debated. Finally, it is clear that Economic History has a strong potential for inspiring new theoretical research and therefore be given the widest possible audience. The topic of the second meeting will be "The Evolution of Central Banks: Lessons for the Future". Its goal is to provide a systematic picture of the link between the emergence of central banks and central bank policies throughout the world. Topics may include, but are not limited to: the emergence of lending of last resort, the relations between asset price bubbles and monetary policy, the provision of liquidity and the financial market, profitability and foreign exchange intervention, ownership and governance, etc. While there are no geographical restrictions, priority will be given to young European scholars and topics with special relevance to Europe. Submission of new material and especially new data is especially encouraged. The programme will also feature a lecture by Charles Goodhart, on "Prevention is better than cure: How can we test whether Central Banks prevented crises?", as well as the display of some preliminary results of the central bank history research task force.

	7/12/2006		Fear and Market Failure: Global Imbalances and "Self-Insurance" , CEPR, London
			This event was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. We will be rescheduling it and will keep you informed accordingly. In this discussion, Marcus Miller will discuss two current issues in an integrated framework: the emergence of global imbalances and the precautionary motive for accumulating reserves. Standard economic models predict modest current account surpluses in emerging markets if they face higher risk than the United States. But Miller argues that precautionary savings in emerging markets can generate substantial �global imbalances�, especially if there is an inefficient supply of global �insurance�. In principle, lower real interest rates will ensure aggregate demand equals supply at a global level - though the required real interest may be negative. Miller will also address the question of sustainability. A precautionary savings glut appears to be a temporary phenomenon, destined for correction as and when adequate reserve levels are achieved. But if a �Sudden Stop� of capital flows to the United States triggers the process of correction, this could lead to the �hard landing� that has been forecast by several leading macroeconomists. When precautionary saving is combined with financial panic, history offers no guarantee of full employment. The meeting will last for one hour, with a 30-minute presentation and 30 minutes of discussion.

	11/12/2006		Linking Science to Markets: The Contribution of Science Policy to Growth and Jobs , Brussels
			Science, Innovation and Growth are now common terms in the media and in public policy debates. Yet a comprehensive understanding of science, innovation and growth, and the relationships among them, is still elusive. To advance our understanding, we need both theoretical and applied research that spans different fields in economics. The CEPR working group on "Science, Innovation and Growth" (SING) brings together top economics researchers in this area. You can find out more about the working group on the SING wiki at http://wiki.cepr.org/sing/. While on average the evidence suggests a growing trend in, and a positive effect of, knowledge transfers from science to industry, there is nevertheless a strong suggestion, particularly in Europe, of an inadequate scale and intensity of such transfers, with the link between science and innovations neither direct nor close. A better understanding of industry science links has thus figured prominently on the policy agenda in many countries. Low levels of industry science links can be attributed to deficiencies, both on the demand and the supply side and a lack of appropriate intermediaries. The first micro-empirical studies emerging indicate the importance of clear intellectual property rights regimes, reward systems and the organisational setup of science institutions. From the industry side, a sufficiently large in-house R&D capability and specialization on innovation paths seems to be needed to efficiently absorb scientific knowledge. To take stock of the current state of economic knowledge on Industry Science Links, we will hold a one-day workshop in Brussels on December 11, 2006. This workshop brings on board researchers from the SING working group and will be financed by the Belgian Federal Government (PAI Project on the Governance of Universities). The workshop will conclude with a panel session, which will draw out the policy implications of the research discussed. The panel session will also address issues such as the "policy mix" for science, innovation and growth, the allocation of policy responsibility in Europe across the EU, national and regional levels. Our aim is to bring together a small group of leading researchers and policy-makers, to provide assessments of what we know from current research on the eve of the Seventh Framework Programme, and then move to a focused discussion between researchers and policy-makers about the implications of this research for policy, and looking forward, the priorities for research and policy.

	14/12/2006		ECB/CEPR Labour Market Workshop 2006: "Wage and Labour Cost Dynamics" , Frankfurt am Main
			Understanding the patterns, sources and implications of wage and labour cost dynamics is an essential requirement for the effective conduct of monetary policy, as wage costs are a crucial determinant of inflation and are closely linked to features of price setting in the euro area. More generally, knowledge about wage setting is fundamental to understand both the transmission process of monetary policy and the potential trade-offs with which monetary policy can be confronted. The workshop organisers are particularly interested in papers addressing at least one of the following labour market themes: Wage and labour cost dynamics in the euro area: This includes empirical characterisation of aggregate, country and sectoral wage and labour cost dynamics in the euro area, as well as a structural analysis of its determinants and its interaction with inflation dynamics. This theme encompasses many of the topical questions in the current policy debate. How do wages and marginal costs adjust over the cycle? In response to various shocks, does the persistence of labour costs and its components differ across countries, sectors or regions? How do these differences relate to differences in inflation dynamics? What is the impact of changes in labour market institutions and globalisation on wage and labour cost dynamics? What are the forces behind the substantial degree of wage moderation that can be observed in a number of euro area countries, as well as its implications for monetary policy and further structural reform? The nature of wage rigidities and its implications for labour cost and price setting at the firm level: this theme covers empirical work using micro-data which specifically looks at the nature of wage and labour cost rigidities across countries and sectors in the euro area, and its implications for labour costs and price developments and for monetary policy implementation. For example, are wage rigidities nominal, real, asymmetric and what are the institutional determinants of those rigidities? How do wage rigidities translate into labour cost developments and price setting at the firm level. Many firms set prices as mark-ups over marginal cost, with labour cost often being the largest component of marginal cost. Typically, the dynamics of labour cost is not only driven by the base wage, but it also reflects the dynamics of other margins of adjustment beyond base wages (e.g. bonuses, extra hours and other forms of flexible work arrangements, fringe benefits, etc.). Do these components of labour cost constitute an important element of adjustment, playing a potentially important role in the transmission from costs to price? A particular interest also concerns the design and use of firm level surveys to investigate the nature and the source of wage and labour cost rigidities and their implications for price setting.

	15/12/2006		TRIO Conference: Organisational Innovation and Corporate Performance , Tokyo
			Every year in December in Tokyo, the NBER, CEPR, and TCER (the Tokyo Center for Economic Research) hold a joint conference. The papers presented at the conference are published in a special issue of Journal of the Japanese and International Economies (JJIE), after a refereeing process. More information can be found in TRIO at http://www.e.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~tito/TRIOconfrnce.htm This year's TRIO is co-sponsored by Hitotsubashi University and will be held in Tokyo on December 15 and 16. The theme of the conference is "Organizational Innovation and Corporate Performance." and the organizers are George Baker (Harvard and NBER) and Hideshi Ito (Hitotsubashi and TCER). The theme of "Organizational Innovation and Corporate Performance" could be interpreted to include not only the impact of corporate structure on performance, but also the relationship between firms and "innovation systems" (which involve the private sector, universities, and the public sector).

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