The Sound of Economics

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan sits down with Alicia García-Herrero and Abigaël Vasselier to assess the new reality of EU-China relations and explain why the European Union must prepare for a much more difficult relationship with China. Relevant publication: García-Herrero, A. and A. Vasselier (2024) ‘ Updating the EU strategy on China: co-existence while de-risking through...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie sits down with Bruegel Senior fellow Zsolt Darvas and Jennifer D. Sciubba , President and CEO of the Population Reference Bureau from Washington DC. Together, they explore the findings of Darvas’ recent paper on the effects of demographic changes on public debt sustainability , which was presented at the informal Meeting of Economic and F...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie sits down with Eurogroup president Paschal Donohoe and Bruegel Senior fellow Guntram Wolff to discuss the EU's dire defence and security challenges and the role of public finances. They also discuss Wolff's latest report on Europe's and Germany's slow rearmament, particularly compared to Russian arms production. Listen to Donohoe's speech...

The Memos to the European Union leadership have been a Bruegel tradition since 2009. Every five years – after the European elections but before a new European Commission takes office – we take stock of EU economic policies, reflect on the EU's main challenges, make recommendations on how the new leadership should address them. In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie invites the...

Maria Demertzis sits down in the studio of The Sound of Economics for one last time in her capacity as Senior fellow and Bruegel’s former Deputy director. In this episode, she reflects on the eight years of her work. What have been the major challenges for the EU and how has Bruegel responded to them? Why does she feel strongly about financial vulnerability and what she sees as the next great chal...

By 2030, the European Union must reduce emissions from the heating and cooling of buildings – responsible for 13 percent of EU emissions – by the equivalent of the annual emissions of Slovakia. In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie sits down with Michael Pahle , Marion Santini and Giovanni Sgaravatti to discuss how greener buildings can play contribute to Europe’s decarbonisa...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan sits down with Alicia García-Herrero and Eric Olander to explore China’s economic engagements in Africa, both in the historical and the modern-day context. They also discuss the criticisms China faces from African countries and the West when it comes to foreign direct investment, trade, opacity and more. While Olander claims that China brings a...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie is joined by Bruegel fellow Ben McWilliams and Johanna Schiele , a Policy Officer at the Innovation Fund in the European Commission, to discuss the benefits and challenges of hydrogen as a clean energy source. Throughout this episode, they explore whether hydrogen could be used as alternative to the extracting and burning of fossil fuels,...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie discusses the current global trade landscape with Penny Naas , of the German Marshall Fund and Atlantic Council, and Niclas Poitiers from Bruegel. They explore the challenges of balancing economic resilience, protectionism, and the push for green technologies amid these transformations. Naas and Poitiers provide insights into the rational...

Rebecca Christie sits down with Jean Pisani-Ferry and André Sapir to discuss the upcoming parliamentary elections in France, amidst growing voter dissatisfaction and legislative gridlock. They discuss the political intrigues behind the upheaval and highlight the potential consequences of a National Rally-dominated assembly, which could obstruct European Union decisions and implement protectionist...

In October 2023, the European Union launched an investigation into whether Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers were receiving unfair subsidies which give them an advantage in the market. In June 2024, the European Commission announced the preliminary conclusion that it would levy additional tariffs of between 17.4ؘ–38% on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs). This would be placed on top of an e...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie sits down with Tony Connelly , Europe editor of Irish public service broadcaster RTÉ, and David Gow , who chairs the Royal Society of Edinburgh's EU-Scotland initiative. They discuss EU-UK relations after Brexit, how Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales fit into the picture, upcoming British elections, and long-term prospects for Irish un...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Bruegel’s non-resident fellow Dirk Schoenmaker presents his latest book ‘ Corporate Finance for Long-Term Value ’ with host Rebecca Christie and CFO at Nederlandse Gasunie, Janneke Hermes . They talk about how corporate finance and sustainability can go together. New models can help firms quantify the cost of social and environmental factors, so they can...

Bruegel and the Financial Times partnered up to host a debate featuring lead candidates from major EU political parties on EU economic issues, namely growth, the single market, economic security and the EU budget. The participants of the debate were: Sandro Gozi, Renew Europe Now Ursula von der Leyen, The European People's Party Nicolas Schmit, the Party of European Socialists Anders Vistisen, Ide...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan talks to Bruegel Senior fellow Alicia García-Herrero and President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, Jens Eskelund , about foreign companies doing business and investing in China. They discuss the difficulties of navigating current geopolitical tensions as well as China’s domestic environment. Jens presented the latest results...

In a world of increasing uncertainties, the European Union’s need to protect itself from new shocks is on the rise. Pandemic-related supply disruptions,  the energy crisis provoked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and economic coercion coming from China have all shown that the EU needs to do more to prepare itself for what may come. But how should Europe de-risk its external relationships without...

The relationship between the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is at the heart of efforts to help Ukraine after Russia's 2022 invasion. How do the alliances work together and how can further cooperation help?   In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie speaks with Oana Lungescu , who served as the longest serving NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organizatio...

How does the EU manage its increasingly vast number of digital laws? Bertin Martens , Kai Zenner and Rebecca Christie discuss how these rules are made, how they work together and how they fit in with the EU's goal of better regulation in this episode of The Sound of Economics. Relevant research: A dataset on EU legislation for the digital world , Bruegel dataset by Kai Zenner, J. Scott Marcus and...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan sits down with Alicia García-Herrero and Paul Triolo to discuss China’s innovation drive and how it compares with the US on key technologies, including semiconductors, green technology and biotech. They delve into how China climbed up the technology ladder, the impact of current geopolitical tensions and the outlook of US-China tech rivalry. Th...

Bruegel and the Financial Times partnered up to host a debate featuring representatives from EU political parties on EU economic issues, specifically competitiveness and growth, economic security and green transition. Rebecca Christie sits down with Bruegel Senior fellow Heather Grabbe , FT Europe correspondent Andy Bounds , also moderator of the debate, to unpack the views they gathered from the...

Climate change is a rising threat to European financial stability, says European Stability Mechanism chief economist Rolf Strauch on this episode of The Sound of Economics. Together with Bruegel non-resident fellow Stavros Zenios and host Rebecca Christie , Strauch discusses how the EU can rally to protect itself from future shocks and keep its sovereign debt backstops ready to meet future needs. 

Science Po professor Jérôme Sgard discusses his new book on the debt crisis of the 1980s on this episode of The Sound of Economics, with host Rebecca Christie and award-winning book author and journalist Paul Blustein . They explore the shockwaves that hit developing countries during this period, starting with the quasi-default of Mexico in 1982, as well as the Brady bond debt relief plan that fol...

In this episode of the sound of economics, Rebecca Christie invites Georg Zachmann and Christian Zinglersen to talk about the ambitious idea of creating a more integrated European electricity market. They discuss the drastic change in Europe’s energy outlook, as we switch from a world of fossil imports to mostly domestic electricity production. They address the benefits of a better-coordinated Eur...

European Union leaders want to breathe new life into the Capital markets union, the decade-old project to reduce fragmentation and put finance to work for the single market. In this episode of the Sound of Economics, Rebecca Christie sits down with Thomas Wieser , former President of the Eurogroup Working Group and chair of the EU's 2019 High Level Group on financial architecture, and Nicolas Véro...

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan sits down with Alicia García-Herrero and Zichen Wang to talk about China’s Two Sessions, the Chinese government's annual plenary sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), held from 4–11 March 2024. They discuss the growth targets which were given during the sessions a...