On 24th of February CERGE-EI hosted a presentation, Perspectives on the European Economy, provided by the European Economic Advisory Group at CESifo. The conference explored a variety of hot topics that are examined in the EEAG Report on the European Economy 2016, which was released earlier in the week. The session included two co-authors of the report, John Driffill and Jan-Egbert Sturm, plus special guest, Kamil Galuščák of the Czech National Bank, and was chaired by Danial Münich of IDEA think-tank at CERGE-EI.

Prof. Sturm, Director of KOF Swiss Economic Institute, set the scene with an overview of the current European economy and a comparison to global economic conditions. This covered the latest figures in economic growth and future forecasts, with the presiding pessimism in financial markets. This included a comment on the continuing pressure on the European Union from mass immigration and a possible ‘Brexit’. John Driffill, a professor at Birkbeck, University of London and Chair of EEAG, followed this with a rundown of intergenerational fairness, a major issue in this year’s report. Driffill presented the economic concerns of an increasingly dependent ageing population and gave recommendations for alleviating the strain on younger generations.

The last two speakers offered a Czech perspective on the discussion. Kamil Galuščák, director of the Economic Research Department at the Czech National Bank, provided an outlook of economic performance in the Czech Republic and the use of monetary policy to promote positive growth. CERGE-EI professor, Daniel Münich, concluded the presentation with a glimpse at some of his research in the Czech labour market.

The session closed with a Q&A with the audience, including questions concerning the Denmark’s performance and the influence of the EEAG Report in the European political sphere. Afterwards the speakers and guests came together for an informal conversation over lunch and coffee.

Watch the event online, including the slides, here.