The Ohlin-Keynes Debate on the German Interwar Reparations Revisited

This paper analyzes the debate between Ohlin and Keynes on the question as to whether Germany was able to make the payments specified in the Dawes Plan. Keynes argued that Germany was able to collect the money but unable to transfer it to the victors because there existed an insurmountable “transfer problem”. Ohlin replied that such a “transfer problem” did not exist and, therefore, that Germany was able to make the payments stipulated by the Dawes Committee. This paper analyzes the positions of the two contenders and argues that the problems are not correctly delimited and that the theoretical bases of the contenders show serious deficiencies. It also brings to light some interesting theoretical and practical paradoxes that neither Keynes nor Ohlin dealt with.

The Comovement between Monetary and Fiscal Policy Instruments during the Post-War Period in the U.S.

This paper empirically studies the dynamic relationship between monetary and fiscal policies by analyzing the comovements between the Fed funds rate and the primary deficit/output ratio. Simple economic thinking establishes that a negative correlation between Fed rate and deficit arises whenever the two policy authorities share a common stabilization objective. However, when budget balancing concerns lead to a drastic deficit reduction the Fed may reduce the Fed rate in order to smooth the impact of fiscal policy, which results in a positive correlation between these two policy instruments. The empirical results show (i) a significant negative comovement between Fed rate and deficit and (ii) that deficit and output gap Granger-cause the Fed funds rate during the post-Volcker era, but the opposite is not true.

Markov Switching Risk Premium and the term structure of interest rates. Empirical evidence from US post-war interest rates

This paper considers the basic present value model of interest rates under rational expectations with two additional features. First, following McCallum (1994), the model assumes a policy reaction function where changes in the short-term interest rate are determined by the long-short spread. Second, the short-term interest rate and the risk premium processes are characterized by a Markov regime-switching model. Using US post-war interest rate data, this paper finds evidence that a two-regime switching model fits the data better than the basic model. The estimation results also show the presence of two alternative states displaying quite different features.

The changing behaviour of the term structure of post-war US

Using U.S. interest rate data covering the period 1950:1-1992:7, this paper tests the rational expectations model of the term structure of interest rates. We show evidence that the rational expectations model of the term structure is supported by the data during the seventies and a period lasting from the mid-eighties to the end of the sample. However, during the …fties, sixties and a period that covers most of the Volcker’s office term (from September 1979 to April 1986) the term structure model is rejected by the data. Moreover, wefind evidence of regime changes in the short-term rate process and the term structure of interest rates. These regime switches roughly coincide with changes in the Federal Reserve chairman. The switches in monetary policy taking place when the chairmanship of the Federal Reserve changes therefore seem to play an important role in characterizing the term structure of interest rates.

Switching Regimes in the Term Structure of Interest Rates During U.S. Post-War: A case for the Lucas proof equilibrium?

Published as an article in: Studies in Nonlinear Dynamics & Econometrics, 2004, vol. 8, issue 1, pages 5.

Body and Grotesque as Self-Disruption in Kerstin Hensel’s Gothic East(ern) German Novel Lärchenau (2008)

[EN] By analysing the novel Lärchenau and its -to a certain point- gothic features, this article interprets the elaboration of body in this novel as a site of the expression of power, but also as an alternative language. The grotesque dimension and the representation of the bodily numbness and pain as projections of historical awareness are key elements for the interpretation of Lärchenau in the context of Post-Unification Germany.

Literaturaren zertarakoa, itzulpenak eta hizkuntzaren auzia Orixerengan

Ejemplar dedicado a: Beñat Oihartzabali gorazarre - Festchrift for Bernard Oyharçabal/ Ricardo Etxepare, Ricardo Gómez, Joseba Andoni Lakarra ( eds.)

Bilingual Lexicography:Relevance of Corpora. The Example of German-Basque as Language Pair

Presentation for the 5th International Conference on Corpus Linguistics (CILC 2013), V Congreso Internacional de Lingüistica de Corpus.

Creating a German���Basque Electronic Dictionary for German Learners

Revista OJS

Bilingual Dictionary Drafting. The Example of German-Basque, a Medium-density Language Pair

Edited by Andrea Abel, Chiara Vettori, Natascia Ralli.

Humanism after the Spanish Civil War: Gernika (1945-53), a Humanities and Social Sciencesbasque magazine

Espainiako Gerra Zibilaren eta II. Mundu Gerrarren ostean Gerra Hotza heldu zen. Testuinguru larri horretan humanismoan ikusi zuten hainbatek zibilizazio-krisiari irtenbidea topatzeko bidea. Gernika aldizkariak (1945-53) bere burua humanistatzat zeukan. Bertako idazleek gai horren inguruan zer adierazi zuten jasotzen saiatu gara, euskarazko zein erdarazko artikuluetan agertzen diren iritziak sailkatuz.