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1、Cuttingedge财政紧缩Doesfiscalausterityboostshort-termgrowth?AnewIMFpaperthinksnot财政紧缩推动短期增长了吗?IMF的一份新报告不这么认为MOSTpeople,amongthemthetensofthousandsofworkerswhoralliedinBrusselsonSeptember29th,believethatfiscalausterityleadstoashrinkingeconomy,atleastintheshortru
2、n.Jean-ClaudeTrichet,presidentoftheEuropeanCentralBank,disagrees.InJunehesaidthat“theideathatausteritymeasurescouldtriggerstagnationisincorrect.”Arguingthatacrediblefiscal-consolidationplanwouldrestoreconfidence,hesaid:“Ifirmlybelievethatinthecurrentcircums
3、tances,confidence-inspiringpolicieswillfosterandnothampereconomicrecovery.”多数人,包括9月29日在布鲁塞尔集会的数万名工人,认为财政紧缩导致经济萎缩,至少在短期内是这样的。欧洲央行行长特里谢不同意这种观点。6月,他说“紧缩措施引发经济停滞的说法是不正确的”。他认为一个可靠的财政整顿计划可以重建信心,他说道,“我坚决认为在当前这种形势下,鼓舞信心的政策会促进而不是阻碍经济复苏。”Withrich-worldbudgetdeficitsa
4、veragingabout9%ofGDPin2009—upfromonly1%in2007—andtheiraveragepublic-debt-to-GDPratioexpectedtohit100%bytheendofthisyear,austerityisabulletthatfewrichcountrieswillbeabletododge.Butisitrighttoclaim,asMrTrichetandotherdevoteesof“expansionaryfiscalconsolidation
5、s”do,thatbelt-tighteningcanactuallyaidgrowthintheshortterm?TheintellectualbackingfortheseclaimscomesfromastudybytwoHarvardeconomists,AlbertoAlesinaandSilviaArdagna,whichstudiedpastfiscaladjustmentsinrichcountries*.Theyfoundthat,moreoftenthannot,fiscaladjust
6、mentsthatreliedonspendingcutsboostedgrowth,evenintheveryshortrun.ButanewstudybyeconomistsattheIMFreckonsthattheHarvardstudywasseriouslyflawed**.由于2009年发达国家的预算赤字平均达到GDP的9%,比2007年的区区1%大幅上升,而且他们的公债与GDP比率的平均值也预计在今年年底达到100%,几乎没有任何发达国家能躲开紧缩这颗子弹。但是,如特里谢先生和其他“扩张性的财
7、政整顿”的信徒所言的那样,紧缩实际上在短期内促进增长吗?哈佛的两位经济学家AlbertoAlesina和SilviaArdagna的研究支持这种说法,他们研究了过去发达国家的财政调整措施,发现依赖于削减开支的财政调整通常促进了经济增长,即使是在很短的时期内。但是IMF经济学家们的一份新研究则认为,哈佛的研究有严重缺陷。Austeritycanhavesomeshort-termbenefits.Imagine,forexample,thatconsumerdemandisdepressedinpartbeca
8、usepeoplefeartheprospectofawrenchingfiscaladjustment.Devisingacredibleausteritypackagecouldleadpeopletoregardtheireconomicfuturewithlesstrepidation.Thisincreasedoptimismmayencouragepeopletospendmorefre