Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Federico Pica Author-Name: Salvatore Villani Title: Public debt and financial sustainability of the italian public finances Abstract: The analysis presented in this paper deals with two main issues: the one of debt sustainability, meant in the particular acceptation proposed in this article, and the one of the effects of debt decumulation for the various territorial communities, in particular for the weak areas of Italy (Mezzogiorno). The proposed analysis aims at showing some possible outcomes of the current economic crisis. Four hypotheses, concerning various kinds of constraints regulating the variation over time of the debt amount, are proposed: the zero (or constant) debt hypothesis, the invariance of GDP-debt ratio, the hypothesis of a ceiling on public debt and, lastly, the case of a programmed path of public debt reduction (the Fiscal Compact). In the best case proposed (the zero debt hypothesis), the results prefigure a prognosis of stagnation, which is more serious for the enterprises and the families of the Mezzogiorno than for the rest of Italy. . Classification-JEL: H63, H72, H73, H74 Keywords: Note: Pages:5-34 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48540&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107001 Number: 1 Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Sergio Cesaratto Title: The endless eurozone crisis, where do we stand? a classical-kaleckian overview Abstract: It is not easy to untangle the logic that in the past led to creation of the European Monetary Union (EMU) and that is currently guiding the prevailing Eurozone (EZ) policies. Although lacking the right institutions, which can be seen as the ultimate root of its crisis, the ten years of the EMU could be celebrated in 2008 with some fanfare. The EMU even seemed a success, judged from the point of view of imbalanced growth of some peripheral countries that masked its deflationary stance. This imbalanced growth was the proximate cause of the EZ financial crisis. In the paper we shall review the main causes of the EZ financial crisis, interpreted as a balance of payments crisis; the role of the European payment system TARGET 2 in buffering its violent blast; the Classical-Kaleckian rationale of the German malevolent mercantilism; the inadequate EZ policy measures to respond to the crisis; possible alternative solutions. Unfortunately, rather than pushing towards the creation of a different set of European institutions, the prevailing crisis resolution philosophy resembles a late vindication of the original deflationary Euro-bias. Classification-JEL: E11, E12, E42, E58, F32, F33, F34, F36, N24 Keywords: Note: Pages:35-63 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48541&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107002 Number: 2 Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Vincenzo Maffeo Title: Il ruolo della BCE nella crisi economica in Europa Abstract: The purpose of the paper is to analyze the role played by the ECB in the economic crisis in Europe, especially in connection with the issue of the sustainability of public debt in some of the major countries of the European Monetary Union. To this end, a comparison is made with the ?divorce?, in Italy in 1981, between the Treasury and the Central Bank. It demonstrates that the independence achieved by the Bank of Italy through this ?divorce?, in addition to allowing for a more stable exchange rate policy, also had the objective of laying down such an institutional set-up able to hinder expansive fiscal policies, seen as an element that could cause wage growth and a profit squeeze. The same objective seems to be at the basis of the founding of the European Monetary Union, by means of the rules of the Maastricht Treaty curbing public deficits and debts on the one hand, and ECB independence from any European political institution on the other. So as not to weaken, and instead strengthen this institutional set-up and the income distribution that it contributes to maintaining, the EBC is not enabled to directly purchase the state securities of countries that are undergoing financial difficulties. Classification-JEL: E25, E31, E42, E43, E52, E58, E62. Keywords: Note: Pages:65-83 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48542&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107003 Number: 3 Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Mitja Stefancic Title: Governance specifics in cooperative banks. or, why do managers in italian cooperative banks "survive" longer Abstract: This paper investigates management turnover in Italian banks by means of the survival analysis method. The study tests whether management turnover differs according to different types of banks; and whether top managers in non-commercial banks are more likely to stay on in their managerial position - to "survive" longer than top managers in commercial banks. Data from 1993 to 2003 have been considered for all Italian banks. On the one hand, results confirm that the juridical form of banks is directly related to management turnover. Cooperative banks show a superior survival probability in comparison to other banks. On the other hand, results show that in Italian banks, management turnover is less frequent for managers with a high level of education and with honorific titles. Top managers in cooperative banks tend to survive longer than top managers in commercial banks also when bank performance is below average. Finally, the paper evaluates the impact of business cycles on management turnover. Classification-JEL: D21, G21, J63 Keywords: Note: Pages:85-105 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48543&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107004 Number: 4 Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Comitato di Redazione Title: Recensioni Abstract: Classification-JEL: Keywords: Note: Pages:107-126 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48544&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107005 Number: 5 Template-type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Comitato di Redazione Title: Libri ricevuti Abstract: Classification-JEL: Keywords: Note: Pages:127-127 Volume: 2012/107 Year: 2012 Issue:107 File-URL:http://www.francoangeli.it/riviste/Scheda_Rivista.aspx?IDArticolo=48545&Tipo=Articolo PDF File-Format: text/HTML Handle: RePEc:fan:steste:v:html10.3280/STE2012-107006 Number: 6