European Firms in a Global Economy: Internal Policies for External Competitiveness (EFIGE)

The 4-year project funded under the EU 7th RTD Framework Programme brings together eight research institutions, among which the IAW, the Centre for European Policy Research (CEPR), the Centre d’Etudes Prospectives et d’Informations Internationales (CEPII) as well as further institutes from Belgium, Italy, Hungary and Spain. Associated partners are the Deutsche Bundesbank, other Central Banks, and the OECD. The empirical analysis in this project is based on the theory of heterogeneous firms. This approach assumes that it is primarily the attributes of the firm that determine the mode and the extent of its participation in international markets. This holds independently from the sectoral specialisation of countries and regions. The project draws upon several existing and newly generated datasets at the firm-level. Nine interacting groups of researchers collaborate on the research, two of which are headed by the director of the IAW, Prof. Dr. Claudia M. Buch. The IAW research modules deal inter alia with the following questions: What is the labour market impact of production relocations? How do financial frictions influence the decision of firms to operate internationally?

For further information, please visit the EFIGE Homepage www.efige.org

EFIGE Publications: Publications

Conferences and workshops:

June 1st and 2nd, 2012: 4th EFIGE Scientific Workshop and Policy Conference at the CREI, Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona (E).

Please see the programme 4th EFIGE Scientific Workshop and Policy Conference.

June 8, 2011: 3rd EFIGE Scientific Workshop and Policy Conference at the University of Nottingham (UK).

Please see the programme 3rd EFIGE Scientific Workshop and Policy Conference.

June 23-24, 2011: The EFIGE partnership (European Firms In a Global Economy / 7th EU Framework Programme), through its German partner, IAW [Academic Organizers: Sascha O. Becker (University of Warwick) and Marc Muendler (UC San Diego)], is participating together with The World Bank, The International Labour Organisation (ILO), and CESifo, in the organisation of a two-day workshop entitled "Globalization and Labour Market Outcomes" at Geneva (Switzerland).

More information here.