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A team of researchers from Pompeu Fabra University, the Institute of Political Economy and Governance (IPEG) and CaixaBank Research has embarked on a globally pioneering project to track the evolution of inequality, as well as the role of the welfare state, in real time. In this dossier, we present the main results we have obtained so far.

Controlling the virus, stimulating demand in the short term, improving the potential for economic growth, thinking about fiscal sustainability in the medium term and boosting the European project are five essential areas to mitigate the effects of the crisis and try to overcome it as soon as possible.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken us to the core and has become a major part of our lives. It has changed our habits and altered the world we live in. From the small to the big: One of its legacies will be a large sack of debt. How much will it weigh and how will it dictate our lives in tomorrow’s world?

Although the drop in activity has been strong, the impact of COVID-19 on the Portuguese labor market is being more contained for the moment, thanks to the temporary adjustment of employment and teleworking.

Monetary policy has reacted quickly and decisively to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, having successfully played the role of «fire-fighter», the ECB will have to remain highly active to support the revival of the economy.

One of the main topics of discussion in this current phase of economic recovery is, without a doubt, inflation. In 2021, it has reached levels not witnessed since 2008 in the US, while in the euro area it is likely to reach levels not seen since 2012, fuelling risks of inflationary pressures. In fact, the latest inflation data have been notably higher than anticipated, especially in the US. In this context, we wonder to what extent these surprises have had a significant impact on the financial markets.

We explore the content of the structural reform agendas proposed by EU countries in the context of NGEU, whether they emanate from the Union itself or at the national level, to paint a picture of what kind of future Europe is pursuing.

We set aside the opportunities provided by the agenda to curb climate change to focus on analysing the impact of climate risks on the financial sector.

In the last 20 years, the use of digital means of payment has steadily increased in Spain. Card purchases in Spain have gone from around 1 billion transactions in the early 2000s to over 4.5 billion in 2019. But are all generations joining this transition at the same speed?

The COVID-19 crisis has triggered a change in consumption habits in our society and has intensified the use of e-commerce. In this article, we analyse whether this intensification has been uniform across all age groups and constant throughout all phases of the pandemic.

The price of Bitcoin reached 50,000 euros at the end of March, around 10 times more than 12 months ago and 3 times more than the peak reached in December 2017. The 10,000 bitcoins that were paid for two pizzas in 2010 would now be worth some 500 million euros, and the value of all the bitcoins in circulation is approaching 1 trillion euros, a figure that lies between the market capitalisation of Google and Facebook. These are dizzying figures that make us wonder whether we are facing an enormous bubble.

Some people are already warning of the risks of the US economy overheating as a result of the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill, an idea that is beginning to permeate the financial markets, with strong rallies at the long end of the yield curve.

The coronavirus pandemic is having a severe impact on emerging economies. Around 100 countries, most of them emerging, are exploring the possibility of obtaining assistance from the IMF or expanding that which they already have in place. Are we entering into a new widespread crisis in the emerging markets like that of the 1980s and 1990s?