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In 2012 Edvard Munch's "The Scream" was auctioned by Sotheby's for a record price of nearly 120 million dollars. The painting was sold using the English auction format, meaning the auction started with a low minimum bid and ended when no one was willing to bid more. This auction format raises interesting questions, however: Was the buyer of "The Scream" potentially willing to pay more? More specifically: Could the painting have been sold for an even higher price given a different set of auction rules? "Market design" is a new economic subfield that seeks to answer questions such as these.

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On June 23, 2016, the British voted to depart from the European Union. Some 70 per cent of voters took to the polls, passing the referendum with a 51.9 per cent majority. Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, which governs departure, foresees a two-year negotiation period that can be extended if necessary. However, both the UK and the EU are not interested in drawing out negotiations, for uncertainty about the outcomes is harmful to both sides.

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The day of decision is just around the corner. Currently, the odds are against a UK departure from the EU, at least for British bookies. Yet whatever the result of the vote, the Brexit referendum has cast a harsh light on the future of the European Union. Euroscepticism is on the rise in many countries, including Germany, where critical voices have been gaining traction.

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Germany’s regulation of professional services needs an overhaul. The country has a wide variety of regulations governing the Freie Berufe, or “liberal professions”, an occupational category that includes lawyers, engineers, architects and doctors, among others. In many of these professions, service providers don’t set their own pay rates – rather, they are determined by the government, which issues legally binding fee rosters. Excessive regulation in this area has attracted numerous complaints from the EU and OECD; indeed, the second phase of a formal suit against Germany for breaching the EU's Services Directive was initiated at the end of February. The German government must now respond to the claim that its Fee Structure for Architects and Engineers (HOAI) violates EU law.

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Since the beginning of March 2016, the Federal Cartel Office has been investigating one of the giants of the digital economy on suspicion of misuse of market power – Facebook. Indeed, since the end of 2010, the European Commission has been looking into Google’s suspected anti-competitive practices. So will a stop finally be put to the anti-competitive behaviours of large internet corporations? This at least is what some commentators are hoping. Is competition policy even capable of adequately addressing the growing market power of large corporations in the digital economy? In order to answer these and further questions, one must consider the particular characteristics of digital markets.

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Claims of increasing inequality are constantly making the headlines. In response to such claims, many are calling for the "rich" to be subject to higher levels of taxation and for further development of a social state. How economic inequalities develop, and the consequences that this will have for German politics, can be summarised in ten hypotheses.

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The effects of the bombshell at the start of 2016 spread from China and had an impact on investors around the world. Within the space of a few days, the Chinese stock exchange fell by 15 per cent. Negative assessments of China's economic development have accumulated. Prior to 2008, the Chinese economy expanded at a rate of between 8 and 14 per cent. During the crisis, China showed itself to be astoundingly robust. Since 2011, however, the rate of growth has plummeted. In 2014, growth was seven per cent. This year, it could fall to five or six per cent. This is still a considerable rate of growth. The question remains, however, whether these rates are really achievable.

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If German Minister of Finance, Wolfgang Schäuble, should happen to be stuck for ideas as to what to give his state ministers for Christmas, he need only read the states' proposal for reform of the German Federal Financial Equalisation System (Finanzausgleich). According to the proposal, federal states should receive nine billion euros in tax receipts per year from the federal government. This being the case, the joyful tidings, announced by the Mayor of Hamburg Olaf Scholz, might come true: "The weaker states will become closer to the average, the strong states, however, will be able to hold onto more of their money than before."

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At the beginning of December, the nations of the world meet in Paris for the 2015 UN Climate Conference. The ultimate goal of the summit is to sign an agreement that will curb CO2 emissions and limit the warming of the earth's atmosphere to two degrees Celsius. If no action is taken to reduce emissions, experts warn that a temperature increase of four or five degrees could be in the cards. Unchecked global warming would also lead to stronger temperature fluctuations, rising sea levels and other changes that pose massive ecological and economic risks.

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Germany is currently experiencing a major wave of immigration. As many as one million migrants are expected to arrive this year, and next year could see a similar number. What are the economic consequences of immigration and how should political leaders respond in Germany and Europe?

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