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Prices and Price Convergence in Emerging Europe: an Overview

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 March 2020

Balázs Égert
Balázs Égert*
Affiliation:
University of Paris X-Nanterre and William Davidson Institute
*
e-mail balazs.egert@oecd.org orbegert@u-paris10.fr
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Abstract

This paper seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of the long-term factors that explain divergent price levels across developed and emerging European countries. We provide stylised facts about the structural factors that influence market and non-market-based service, house and goods prices. The stylised facts show that there is much more behind differences in price levels among European countries than the much heralded Balassa-Samuelson effect and that prices other than those of market services are potential determinants of price levels and inflation rates in emerging Europe. Finally, we sketch out the possible mismatches between price level convergence and inflation rates.

Keywords

Price levelinflationBalassa-Samuelsontradableshouse pricesregulated pricesEuropetransitionreal convergencecatching-up
Type
Articles
Information
National Institute Economic Review , Volume 204 , April 2008 , pp. 66 - 84
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 National Institute of Economic and Social Research

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