Skill formation in Britain and Germany: Recent developments in the context of traditional differences. CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, No.06.1, 2006

This paper proposes a comparison of skill formation in Germany and Britain over the last decades. Taking historical trends into account, the two cases can be regarded as representing different types of skill production regimes. Institu-tional features include a relatively low degree of standardization of training and a larger amount of on-the-job training in Britain. In Germany, post-compulsory training has been conducted predominantly within the dual system of vocational training, underlining the vocational specificity of a large part of the labor market. As a consequence, international differences in individual skill investments, transitions from school to work and other life-course patterns can be observed. At least in Britain, however, the situation seems to have changed considerably during the 1990s. The paper argues that the divergence in more recent developments can still be understood as an expression of historical path-dependency given the traditional connections between the post-compulsory training system and the broader societal context in which it is embedded. These concern, in particular, links with the system of general and academic education as the basis for – and also a possible competitor with – vocational training; links with the labor market as they are indicated by specific skill requirements and returns to qualifications; and, links with the order of social stratification in the form of the selective acquisition and the social consequences of these qualifications. The links manifest themselves as typical individual-level consequences and decisions. Founded on the basis of these distinctions, the aim of this paper is to investigate the preceding conditions for recent developments in the qualification systems of Britain and Germany, which have adapted to specific challenges during the last decades.

Price formation in commodities markets. Financialisation and beyond. Report of an ECMI/CEPS Task Force

This report attempts to demystify the sphere of commodities markets worldwide by providing an in-depth examination of the major commodity groups, focusing on product characteristics, supply chains, pricing, liquidity, financial intermediation, industry players and the interplay between derivatives markets and the underlying physical goods. In so doing, the report contributes to the international debate with important information about the diverse market structures across commodities, including supply and demand elasticities, concentration of ownership, infrastructure organisation and layers of financial participation. While describing the endogenous factors, it also examines the increasing role of exogenous factors now impacting commodities. Finally, it assesses the drivers of the growth of derivatives markets and their impact on price formation. This report is a draft of the final version presented at a meeting at CEPS on 9 July 2013. A final version will be uploaded at the end of the summer when the book will be available in print.