This article revisits the main tenets of Bharadwaj's intellectual legacy, exploring her critique of methodological individualism, and her insistence on the distinction between objective and subjective magnitudes in the explanation of economic phenomena and her closeness to Sraffa, in defending the classical political economy approach against the theories based on the method of marginal analysis. I will summarize the main points of her critique of mainstream economic theory, stressing the distinctive differences in the methodological frameworks and theoretical approaches characteristic of the two broad streams in theories of value and distribution - one, the classical, the surplus-based, theories, and the other, the demand-and-supply-based equilibrium theories.
This article revisits John Maynard Keynes' critique of laissez-faire and his proposal for a managed capitalism, interpreting it through a Post-Keynesian lens with particular attention to emerging market economies (EMEs). It argues that the 'socialization of investment' entails a permanent and active role for the State in stabilizing expectations, sustaining effective demand, and promoting structural change. First, it reconstructs Keynes's rejection of economic liberalism and his conception of a monetary economy characterized by uncertainty, expectations, and the non-neutrality of money. Second, it draws on Post-Keynesian contributions to show that Keynesian policies should be understood not merely as countercyclical tools, but as a broader institutional framework in which fiscal, monetary, and financial policies continuously shape investment and growth dynamics. Third, it examines the constraints EMEs face due to financial globalization, currency hierarchy, and volatile capital flows, which limit policy autonomy. The article argues that a coordinated policy mix - combining fiscal, monetary, exchange-rate, and regulatory instruments, alongside capital controls and regional financial arrangements - is necessary to expand policy space and support development objectives.
Europe's persistent slowdown in labor productivity growth has widened the gap with global peers, largely due to an innovation lag that only recently spurred targeted policy responses. This slowdown, however, has unfolded unevenly across regions, reinforcing existing territorial disparities. To address this dual challenge, this paper applies an augmented Kaldor-Verdoorn framework to test for increasing returns beyond manufacturing. Using a regional-sectoral panel of 237 European NUTS-2 regions (2004-2022), we examine how sectoral output growth drives productivity gains and shapes regional disparities. Results reveal strong core-periphery heterogeneity: while manufacturing remains the main productivity engine, ICT and other knowledge-intensive services play a growing role. Accounting for fiscal and institutional diversity, findings support a twin-track strategy - industrial upgrading and digital adoption - embedded in place-based, two-tier policies to revitalize productivity and foster long-term regional convergence.
The emergence of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) has sparked significant debates extending beyond the technical and economic realms, raising critical questions about their potential impact on the broader political economy landscape. It is crucial to examine the political and geopolitical implications of this shift. This study explores the political economy considerations surrounding CBDCs, unravelling the intricate interplay between economic motivations, political agendas and power dynamics. The analysis begins by exploring domestic implications, investigating how adoption could influence the balance of power between central banks, governments, and the private sector. It examines the potential for CBDCs to enhance central bank autonomy, reshape fiscal and monetary policy coordination, and disrupt traditional financial intermediation models. The study then moves to the international political economy, assessing geopolitical ramifications. It evaluates the potential for CBDCs to challenge the hegemony of existing reserve currencies, thereby reshaping global financial landscapes. It also investigates the implications of cross-border interoperability on international trade, capital flows and economic interdependence. By exploring case studies of major economies, the study provides empirical insights into the considerations guiding development strategies. Finally, it examines the potential for international cooperation versus competition, highlighting how new alliances or tensions may emerge in the CBDC sphere.
The debate about CBDC seems to attract writers who are interested in technology and utopias, but not necessarily in the functioning of a modern monetary system. There are many misconceptions about what money is and what CBDC would change. Different political and economic schools see CBDC as a fantastic object, something hard to pin down, but definitely utopian in character. Achieving the fantastic object requires sacrifice. Depending on the point of view, different visions of what those sacrifices might be have emerged. Sovereignty over the payment system versus dependence on rent-extracting foreign firms is one of these visions. After presenting alternative paths to CBDC, we present a technical discussion of what CBDC is and why its introduction is unlikely to result in major changes, if it is introduced at all.
This paper takes inspiration from John Maynard Keynes's essay published in 1931. In this essay he asked himself: 'What are the Economic Possibilities in 100 years' time', hence our present days! He assumed that productivity continues to grow by 2 per cent per annum, making GDP approximately 8 times higher 100 hundred year hence. Which, in fact, is nearly what has happened. But Keynes added for what use? The perspective of the paper is, what would Keynes have said if he was writing today looking into the future. 'Use the growing productivity wisely to the benefit of mankind'. Hence, reduce working hours, reduce inequality and, not least, secure sustainable development for the sake of the grandchildren, all three of which could be achieved by the ever-growing productivity.
The objective of this paper is to provide a survey on the methods of demand-led decomposition and its different uses on the analyses of the patterns of growth, as well as some criticisms and limitations of such methods and analyses. We will present and compare the decompositions based on the net-exports method (used mainly by neo-Kaleckians and Comparative Political Economy), the attribution method, and the 'Supermultiplier method' (used mainly by some Sraffians). We will then present how such decompositions are used to discuss the patterns of growth of some countries, such as the demand and growth regimes, the growth models, as well as the insights provided by the supermultiplier analysis. We will present and discuss some criticisms and limitations of such decomposition methods and its uses, based on the literature.
The aim of this article is to clarify the meaning and functioning of the 'fiscal channel' of unconventional monetary policies. New Keynesians present it as a key transmission channel of unconventional monetary policies. However, this channel is generally not analysed in depth, so that it remains a 'black box', with a need to investigate inside. For this purpose, we build a database of articles mentioning the term 'fiscal channel', with 82 documents between 2002 and 2024. This review leads us to distinguish between two approaches for understanding the fiscal channel: a 'monetary' approach and an 'interest rate' approach. For each of these two approaches, we contrast the theories of the New Keynesians with the post-Keynesians alternatives. We show that, although there are points of convergence among these schools of thought regarding the analysis of the fiscal channel, there are numerous and significant points of divergence. In light of these limitations of the fiscal channel highlighted by the post-Keynesians, we conclude on a critical appraisal of the importance of the New Keynesian view of the fiscal channel.
