Eastern Journal of European Studies

European Union: fears and hopes

Author: Gilles ROUET

Abstract: This contribution analyses some data from Eurobarometer 83, spring 2015, especially to draw a map of Fears. The European Union is a divided space and one of the main consequences of the budget (financial) crisis of Greece, followed by the crisis caused by the arrival of thousands of immigrants is an enhanced communication difficulty between the Western and Eastern parts of the EU But all citizens have some new rights with the European Citizenship, which are additional. One of the main issues for the future could be to change the fundamental basis of the Union, thus trying to organize a new articulation between local and supranational, with another role for States, for example to change the organisation of European elections, and to pursue the connection of public spaces with mobility.

Keywords: European identities, fears, hopes, local, mobility, migrations, European citizenship

Pages: 5-33 | Full text (PDF)

The economic and mathematical analysis of migration of employable population as a factor of national modernization in crisis

Authors: Liudmyla ANDROSHCHUK, Natalya CHERNENKO

Abstract: The methodical approach presented in the article allows for an unbiased analysis of the complex migratory processes that take place in Ukraine due to the influence of social, economic and financial indicators. The article offers a reliable analysis of the migratory processes, applying the differential logistic population model in order to clarify the effect of labour migration on the productive ability of the economy. The authors investigate the factors that induce a human person to migrate, and show that globalization affects international mobility.

Keywords: migration, migration flows, relocation, logistic population model, differential equations

Pages: 25-47 | Full text (PDF)

Who is making informal payments for public healthcare in East-Central Europe? An evaluation of socio-economic and spatial variations

Authors: Colin C. WILLIAMS, Ioana A. HORODNIC, Adrian V. HORODNIC

Abstract: Informal patient payments are a widespread phenomenon in post-communist countries. In order to identify who is more likely to make informal payments in East-Central Europe, a 2013 survey is used. Reporting data from Special Eurobarometer No. 397 ('Corruption'), the finding is that patients in Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Romania are significantly more likely to make extra informal payments or to give valuable gifts to medical practitioners or to make a hospital donation additional to the official fees. Women are more likely to make informal payments for healthcare services whilst unemployed patients or those never or almost never having difficulties in paying bills are less likely to make informal payments. The implications of the findings are then explored, displaying the population groups and spaces that need targeting when seeking to tackle informal patient payments.

Keywords: informal payments, informal patient payments, East-Central Europe, socio-economic variations, health policy

Pages: 49-61 | Full text (PDF)

Macroeconomic instability: its causes and consequences for the economy of Ukraine

Author: Natalia SKOROBOGATOVA

Abstract: The article deals with the concepts of appearance and elimination of macroeconomic instability, and the Keynesian approach for overcoming issues in Ukraine's macroeconomic instability. Based on the Ukraine Statistics Service and World Bank data, Ukraine's economy tendencies have been defined: the country has not reached the pre-crisis economic level. The article identifies the reasons of negative balance payments and budget deficit: a decrease in production value, negative trade balance, growth of foreign creditor's debt, currency instability, an increase in budget spending. The dynamics of income and expenditure within Ukraine budget has been analyzed, and also the destructiveness of existing approaches for the main financial documents has been grounded. Considering Ukraine's economic and political situation, the main causes of macroeconomic instability are systematized. Government-implemented approaches for overcoming the macroeconomic instability have been suggested. The article introduces an approach for minimizing the negative effects on businesses, based on the timely identification of macroeconomic risks in terms of internal and external management. The possible negative impacts in case the timely decisions are not implemented have been assessed.

Keywords: macroeconomic instability, economic development, GDP, state budget, threats

Pages: 63-80  | Full text (PDF)

An overview of European good practices in public procurement

Authors: Ada POPESCU, Mihaela ONOFREI, Christopher KELLEY

Abstract: Public procurement has always been a major source of corruption in Europe, as acknowledged by national and European officials, by NGOs and by representatives of civil society. Too often, public procurement serves the personal interests of corrupt officials rather than the best interest of the community. During the last decade, anti-corruption efforts have increasingly focused on public procurement corruption. Most European countries, including European Union members, have tried to eliminate public procurement corruption by implementing new legal rules to ensure compliance with public procurement standards and by prosecuting offenders. After surveying a variety of good practices for eliminating corruption in public procurement in Europe, this paper concludes that the new rules have produced mixed results, with the most unfavourable outcomes occurring in Central and Eastern European countries where public procurement corruption is more virulent than elsewhere in Europe.

Keywords: public procurement, corruption, anti-corruption practices

Pages: 81-91 | Full text (PDF)

The effectiveness of policy interventions in CEE countries

Authors: Alin-Marius ANDRIES, Florentina IESAN-MUNTEAN, Simona NISTOR  

Abstract: This paper assesses the effectiveness of intervention measures adopted by central authorities during 2005-2012 in CEE. We investigate their impact on bank stability in 15 countries from CEE using bank-level data and OLS estimation method. The bank stability is proxied by the natural logarithm of the Z-Score and the non-performing loans to gross loans ratio. Empirical findings suggest that interest rates cuts, as well as domestic and foreign liquidity injections have a significant impact on bank stability in Emerging Europe. Moreover, their effectiveness differs according to several bank characteristics. Policy measures adopted by CEE countries significantly reduced the stability of domestic banks, but increased the stability of banks with a lower level of capitalization. The impact on the Z-score of banking system liquidity policy measures and the policy interest rates cuts is significantly lower in the case of domestic banks, amplified for less-capitalized banks (except for the category regarding banks' solvency), while their impact on large banks remains statistically insignificant.

Keywords: crisis, policy interventions, bank stability, CEE

Pages: 93-124 | Full text (PDF)

The determinants of exchange rate in Croatia

Authors: Manuel BENAZIC, Ines KERSAN-SKABIC

Abstract: The dilemma for every country with an independent monetary policy is which kind of exchange rate arrangement should be applied. Through the exchange rate policy, countries can influence their economies, i.e. price stability and export competiveness. Croatia is a new EU member state, it has its own monetary policy and currency but it is on the way to euro introduction. Regarding the experiences from the beginning of the 1990s when Croatia was faced with serious monetary instabilities and hyperinflation, the goal of Croatian National Bank (CNB) is to ensure price stability and one way to do so is through exchange rate policy. Croatia, as a small and open economy, has applied a managed floating exchange rate regime. The exchange rate is determined primarily by the foreign exchange supply and demand on the foreign exchange market, with occasional market interventions by the CNB. Therefore, in order to maintain exchange rate stability, policymakers must be able to recognize how changes in these factors affect changes in the exchange rate. This research aims to find a relationship among the main sources of foreign currency inflow and outflow and the level of exchange rate in Croatia. The analysis is carried out by using the bounds testing (ARDL) approach for co-integration. The results indicate the existence of a stable co-integration relationship between the observed variables, whereby an increase in the majority of variables leads to an exchange rate appreciation.

Keywords: exchange rate, co-integration, ARDL approach, Croatia

Pages: 125-150 | Full text (PDF)

The relevance of the housing market for the banks' risk profile in Albania

Author: Erjona REBI

Abstract: The housing market is an important sector for Albanian banks. Housing market financing dominates retail loans, and at the same time, houses represent a high share of the pledged collateral. This study aims to evaluate the role that the housing market plays in the Albanian banks' risk-taking profile. The empirical work confirms the statistically significant difference in the risk profile between real estate and non-real estate banks. The dynamics of the housing market influences both types of banks, but the real estate banks are more sensitive to the housing market conditions. The negative relationship between the housing market developments with specialization of banks in real estate market reflects the high informality of the housing market and handicaps such as governmental interference, institutional shortcomings and flawed enforcement of property rights.

Keywords: housing market, mortgage, bank risk profile, z-score

Pages: 151-168 | Full text (PDF)

The United States and the European Community, 1969-1974: an uneasy partnership

Author: Thi Thuy Hang NGUYEN

Abstract: The relations between the United States and the European Community under the Nixon Administration (1969-1974) were considerably changing. Post-1945 cooperation and dependence increasingly gave way to economic competition and division in military and foreign policies. Yet, the United States and the European Community knew that they were strategically important to each other, thus they had to continue cooperation and coordination to defend and advance their economic and strategic interests. With a documentary research approach, this paper aims to examine how the United States and the European Community their partnership evolved between 1969 and 1974. It explores the ties that the Nixon Administration designed to bind the European Community and the European Community's responses. It also puts forth that despite their efforts to continue cooperation; the relations between the United States and the European Community were on a downward course. It will be concluded that the United States and the European Community experienced a difficult time in their relations between 1969 and 1974, but both sides showed certain efforts to maintain the partnership.

Keywords: United States, European Community, Nixon Administration, European integration, NATO, Atlantic alliance

Pages: 169-184 | Full text (PDF)

BOOK REVIEW:

Adrian Liviu Ivan, Teorii și practice ale integrării europene [Theories and Practices of European Integration], Cluj-Napoca: CA Publishing, 2015

Author: Adrian Daniel STAN

Pages: 185-187 | Full text (PDF)