scholarly journals MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS OF HAPPINESS: CASE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nerajda FERUNI ◽  

The aim of this paper is to test empirically the relationship between life satisfaction, another term used for happiness, and macroeconomic indicators such as GDP per capita, which is a proxy for economic growth, unemployment, inflation, income distribution and government expenditure in the European Union countries during the period of 2005-2017. The chosen variables are some of the most significant determinants of economic growth as well. Using the Fixed Effects model, which falls under the Panel Generalized Least Square method, the empirical results are in accordance with the literature review and suggest that unemployment and inflation have negative significant impacts on life satisfaction. Additionally, higher government expenditures and a higher level of economic growth lead to a higher level of life satisfaction in the EU countries, while unfair income distribution leads to a lower level of life satisfaction. Keywords: life satisfaction, macroeconomic indicators, economic growth, EU

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6003
Author(s):  
Manuel Carlos Nogueira ◽  
Mara Madaleno

Every year, news about the publication of rankings and scores of important international indexes are highlighted, with some of the most prestigious being the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), the Human Development Index (HDI), the Ease of Doing Business (EDB), the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) and the Global Entrepreneurship (GEI). A country’s progression in these indices is associated with economic growth, especially since several empirical studies have found evidence to reinforce these beliefs, the indices having been built based on the scientific literature on economic growth. Building a database on these indices for European Union countries between 2007 and 2017 and using panel data methodologies and then 2SLS (Two-Stage Least Squares) to solve the problem of endogeneity, we verify empirically through panel data estimates, what is the relationship between the mentioned indices and the European Union countries’ economic growth for the period. However, as the European Union is made up of diverse countries with different economic and social realities, we divided the countries into six clusters and made an individual interpretation for each one. We found that human development and competitiveness play an important role in economic growth, and entrepreneurship also impacts this growth. Regarding income distribution, applying the Gini index, we found that only human development mitigates inequalities.


Economies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Deimante Blavasciunaite ◽  
Lina Garsviene ◽  
Kristina Matuzeviciute

A growing number of recent research analyse the trade balance impact on economic growth. However, ambiguous results of studies imply the need for the research as the deteriorating trade balance hinders economic growth. This research aims to investigate the impact of the trade balance on economic growth as well as to evaluate it during the periods of trade deficit. Our estimations are based on the European Union (EU) 28 countries panel data over the period of 1998–2018, using the OLS method of multivariate regression analysis with fixed effects and focusing on two strategies: (i) including all trade balance periods, and (ii) adding deficit dummy variable seeking to evaluate whether during deficit periods we can find different and significant effect on economic growth. Evaluating all trade balance periods, the obtained results indicate the negative and lagging impact of the trade balance on economic growth, and no significant differences of the impact were identified during the deficit periods. The deterioration of trade balance reduces average economic growth and from linear relationship evaluation, we can state that it does not matter whether it starts from trade deficit or surplus result. The results obtained may also obscure the possibility of a non-linear effect, which would suggest a stronger negative impact on economic growth when the trade balance deteriorates in the presence of a large trade deficit. When discussing directions for further research it would make sense to consider other factors, such as the size of the deficit and its permanence.


2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-308
Author(s):  
Joanna Wyszkowska-Kuna

The aim of this paper is to study and compare the importance of intermediate demand for financial services for the growth of production in the European Union countries. In the study the methodology introduced by Jorgenson et al. (1987) is used. This assumes that changes in the production (in real terms) result from changes in intermediate inputs of raw and manufacturing materials and services, as well as in factor inputs (labour and capital) and in total factor productivity. The advantage of this method is the ability to calculate the contributions of different components of intermediate inputs (including service inputs – total or with respect to particular service categories) to production growth in the whole economy and in individual industries. The study is carried out with respect to financial services, but their contribution to economic growth is compared with the contribution of knowledge--intensive business services that have been already recognized as affecting economic and productivity growth. The data used in the study come from the World Input-Output Database. The analysed period covers the years 1995–2009, owing to the availability of relevant data.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-22
Author(s):  
Eliska Strakova ◽  
Eva Kalinova

The combination of the need to adjust the energy mix in favor of the environment and the demands on energy consumption and at the same time on the economic growth of states leads to an increase in energy dependence. The high level of energy dependence is often cited as a potential threat to the economic growth of the state. The aim of the paper is to find out whether there is a correlation between macroeconomic indicators and the degree of energy dependence. Using the Pearson correlation coefficient, we examine the strength of the relationship between GDP, trade balance, inflation, unemployment and the degree of energy dependence on the example of the states of the European Union in the period 2005 2018. The results of the research show that the relationship between the degree of energy dependence and macroeconomic indicators for the European Union is completely individual and the strength and direction of correlation varies from country to country. Combining the degree of energy dependence in general with the direct threat to economic growth therefore proves to be misleading and it is necessary to always deal with a specific state in this matter and take into account other factors that could affect the relationship under study. These conclusions represent the beginning of a paradigm shift that energy dependence threatens the state economy, and therefore more emphasis can be placed on other aspects, such as the environmental ones, when adopting new energy strategies.


Author(s):  
Deimantė Šulskytė

In the context of global economy, logistics activities are necessary for ensuring the global competitiveness of other sectors and comprehensive development of the country. In the recent years, the concept of sustainable development is changing the meaning of economic growth. Taking into account the meaning of logistics and principles of sustainable development, the main aim of the article is to assess the impact of the logistics sector on sustainable development. In order to achieve this aim, theoretical concepts of sustainable development, logistics and its relationship are revealed , as well as key macroeconomic indicators and indices are identified and applied when evaluating the impact of logistics sector on sustainable development. The findings indicate that in the context of European Union countries, logistics sectors related with transport and IT factors significantly influence different indices of sustainable development.


Author(s):  
Koray Yapa ◽  
Mert Durmus ◽  
Nezih Tayyar ◽  
İbrahim Akbulut

Macroeconomic indicators are used to evaluate the current performance and forecast the future state of the economy. Within the scope of the chapter; macroeconomic indicators such as GDP per capita, unemployment, inflation, real interest rates, and growth rates constitute the criteria of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model. The European Union (EU) countries and Turkey are the alternatives of the MCDM problem. Best Worst Method (BWM) is an MCDM method developed by Jafar Rezaei in 2015. In this method, the decision-maker identifies only the best and worst criteria and compares them with the remaining criteria. In this chapter, the macroeconomic indicators of Turkey and EU countries analyzed by BWM. As a result of the study, Luxembourg ranks first, Denmark second, and Sweden third. The last three countries are Portugal, Croatia, and Greece. Turkey ranks 24th.


2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (36) ◽  
pp. 127-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Pascual Sáez ◽  
Santiago Álvarez-García ◽  
Daniela Castañeda Rodríguez

AbstractThis paper provides new evidence of the impact of government spending on economic growth in the European Union countries. Governments can adjust their levels of spending in order to influence their economies, although the relationship between these variables can be positive or negative, depending on the countries included in the sample, the period of estimation and the variables which reflect the size of the public sector. The results obtained based on regression and panel techniques suggest that government expenditure is not clearly related with economic growth in the European Union countries over the period 1994-2012.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document