Sixth ECB biennial conference on fiscal policy and EMU governance

The European Central Bank is organising its sixth biennial conference on Fiscal Policy and EMU Governance, which will take place in Frankfurt on 18-19 December 2023.

In view of the Covid-19 crisis, the war in Ukraine and its economic consequences, and the current situation of high inflation, the role of fiscal policy for stabilisation and its effects on inflation are matters of interest for both academics and policymakers. The aim of this conference is to explore these issues, including the interaction of fiscal and monetary policy, fiscal policy implications of monetary policy normalisation, and risk-sharing arrangements and private/public balance sheet developments in monetary unions. 

In addition to academic paper presentations and a keynote presentation by Olivier Blanchard (Peterson Institute for International Economics), the conference will include a high-level policy panel on ‘New policy challenges and reforms needs for the EMU’.

Topics

Theoretical and empirical papers on the following topics are particularly welcome:

• interlinkages between fiscal policy, monetary policy, and the finance sector, including aspects specific to monetary unions
• the role of fiscal policy as a stabilising tool and the effects of fiscal policy on inflation
• implications of high inflation and rising debt financing costs for the sustainability of sovereign debt
• risk-sharing arrangements and private/public balance sheet developments in monetary unions
• fiscal policy implications of monetary policy normalisation
• EMU institutional challenges and reform needs in European (fiscal) governance
• the role of fiscal policy in the mitigation of climate change
• the interplay between structural policies, financial policies and monetary/fiscal policies

However, the scope of the conference is wider than the topics listed above, and submissions on other related topics are also encouraged. The conference material will be published on the ECB’s website.

Please submit papers in PDF format to fiscal_conference_2023@ecb.europa.eu by 15 June 2023. The authors of the accepted papers will be notified by 15 July 2023.

Expenses

Travel and accommodation expenses of presenting authors and discussants will be covered by the ECB. Participants from central banks and other official institutions will be expected to cover their own expenses.

Conference organisers

Jacopo Cimadomo, Demosthenes Ioannou, Bartosz Maćkowiak, Leopold von Thadden, Nico Zorell (all ECB).