News

How do demographic change and climate change affect financial markets and their actors? In what ways do they influence financial decision-making, pensions, interest rates, and even the architecture and regulation of financial markets and institutions? To explore these questions, ZEW Mannheim organised a conference on “Ageing and Sustainable Finance” from 6 to 8 April 2022.

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After the economic experts had significantly adjusted their forecasts in the previous month, this month they only see the need to adjust their projections more strongly with regard to inflation. What is rather unusual is the wide range of forecasts. This is the result of the business cycle tableaus by ZEW Mannheim and the German daily newspaper, Börsen-Zeitung.

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It is undisputed that Germany has some catching up to do in terms of digitalisation. Particularly in digital key technologies and the digital transformation of the health care system, the Federal Republic cannot keep up with other countries, criticise the members of the Expert Commission on Research and Innovation (EFI) in their Annual Report 2022. On 28 April 2022, Professor Irene Bertschek, head of the ZEW Research Department “Digital Economy” and member of the EFI Expert Commission, and Dr. Anna Christmann, Commissioner for the Digital Industry and Start-ups of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action, discussed the measures that the government coalition parties envisage with regard to digitalisation as part of the ZEW event series "First-Hand Information on Economic Policy”.

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In spring 2022, the first easing of COVID-19 restrictions was barely in sight before the next crisis followed. With the Russian attack on Ukraine, Germany was once again placed in a state of emergency. “The state is tasked with managing these crises, but must not neglect its long-term responsibilities. With our research, we provide orientation for economic policy action and make fact-based information available to the public. Especially in times of uncertainty, this is more important than ever,” explains ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach. The ZEW Annual Report 2021, which has now been published in German, provides an overview of ZEW’s activities in the past year.

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ZEW Mannheim is pleased to announce the fifth workshop on spatial dimensions of the labour market, jointly organised with the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), on 5 and 6 October 2022 in Nuremberg. This year, a special focus is on aspects revolving around the Covid-19 crisis. The pandemic causes enormous economic and social disruptions which might affect regional labour markets in various ways in the short and long term.

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The digital economy poses enormous challenges for policymakers in terms of innovation, competition and regulation. How can digital markets be regulated properly, how can innovations be fostered and competition be made fair at the same time? These and many other questions were discussed by around 190 participants from science, politics and business at this year’s annual conference of the Mannheim Centre for Competition and Innovation (MaCCI) at ZEW Mannheim.

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Despite owning real estate, many people worry about their income in retirement. In recent years, numerous financing models, including life annuity, have come onto the market and promise to solve the problem. These new models allow owners to liquidate their home without losing the right to live there. In the 19th episode of the #ZEWPodcast, ZEW economist Dr. Karolin Kirschenmann compares various equity release products and explains who might be interested in them. She also illustrates how policymakers can provide regulation and how the market works in other countries.

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As a result of the war in Ukraine and the Western sanctions against Russia, energy and commodity prices are rising. Goods for daily use are becoming more expensive, and oil prices are rising rapidly, as are inflation forecasts. Companies in the chemical and logistics sectors, for example, which are directly affected by the price increases for gas, oil and other raw materials, are adjusting their business models. Labour costs are falling with unexpectedly higher inflation rates and constant nominal wages. This has a temporary stabilising effect. Also, more people are employed in the defence industry, in energy conservation and alternative energies. However, aggregate demand for goods may decline as people begin to prioritise which goods they need and which they can do without if prices continue to rise.

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After the sentiment indicator had recorded an increase for six quarters in a row, the German Real Estate Finance Index (DIFI) by ZEW Mannheim and JLL fell in the first quarter of 2022. Compared to the previous quarter, the index dropped by 3.5 points to 7.2 points.

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ZEW Mannheim is pleased to announce the international conference on the German labor market in a globalized world on 24 and 25 June 2022. The conference focuses on technology, trade, and demographic changes and the ways they interact with employment, wages, and participation in the labour market, with a particular emphasis on the role of institutions and on labour markets during the COVID-19 crisis.

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