Clark Center Forum

About the Clark Center Forum

The Forum for the Kent A. Clark Center for Global Markets is home to the European, Finance, and US Economic Experts Panels as well as a repository of thoughtful, current, and reliable information regarding topics of the day.
US

AI and Market Power

Question A:

Use of artificial intelligence is likely to lead to a substantial increase in problems associated with market power in digital markets.

Question B:

Artificial intelligence offers substantial opportunities for new entrants into digital markets that have previously been concentrated.

Question C:

Artificial intelligence is likely to be a highly concentrated industry, dominated by a handful of players.

 
FT-Booth US Macroeconomists Survey

FTxBooth: Rate increases to continue?

This installment of the FTxBooth US Macroeconomists Survey discusses the likelihood that the Fed will continue to raise rates and views oil supply as a top inflation risk The summary results are below and you can read the Financial Times article here, subscription required. View the results of this survey >> For social media: Please […] 
Europe

Policy Responses to Recent Bank Failures

This European survey examines (a) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Expand central banks’ lender of last resort facilities for banks; (b) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Substantially increase the limit on bank deposit insurance; (c) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Substantially increase bank capital requirements; (d) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Use market values of all traded assets to compute banks’ regulatory capital 
US

Policy Responses to Recent Bank Failures

This US survey examines (a) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Expand central banks’ lender of last resort facilities for banks; (b) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Substantially increase the limit on bank deposit insurance; (c) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Substantially increase bank capital requirements; (d) The response to recent bank failures should be to: Use market values of all traded assets to compute banks’ regulatory capital 
Europe

Debt Sustainability

This European survey examines (a) Debt sustainability analysis – for example, as practiced currently by the International Monetary Fund – substantially improves the ability to predict future sovereign debt crises; (b) The European Commission’s proposed move from the existing EU fiscal rules to ones based on debt sustainability analysis would be a measurable improvement; (c) A move from the existing fiscal rules to independent fiscal councils would be more effective than a move to rules based on debt sustainability. 
US

Debt Sustainability

This US survey examines (a) Debt sustainability analysis – for example, as practiced currently by the International Monetary Fund – substantially improves the ability to predict future sovereign debt crises; (b) The European Commission’s proposed move from the existing EU fiscal rules to ones based on debt sustainability analysis would be a measurable improvement; (c) A move from the existing fiscal rules to independent fiscal councils would be more effective than a move to rules based on debt sustainability. 
Finance

Enhanced Regulation of Private Fund Advisers

This Finance survey examines (a) The benefits of the new SEC rules on private funds - which require private funds to provide transparency to their investors regarding the fees and expenses and other terms of their relationship with private fund advisers and the performance of such private funds - substantially exceed their costs; (b) The new SEC rules will have a substantially negative impact on the industry by stifling capital formation and reducing competition; (c) It is appropriate policy for the SEC to impose such rules on private funds even though the investors (limited partners) are sophisticated entities 
Europe

Europe’s Environmental Taxonomy

This European survey examines (a) The EU's taxonomy for sustainable activities - a classification system that defines criteria for economic activities that are aligned with a net zero trajectory by 2050 and the broader environmental goals other than climate - is an effective way to steer greener investment and the energy transition by firms and financial institutions.
Details on the taxonomy are here: https://finance.ec.europa.eu/sustainable-finance/tools-and-standards/eu-taxonomy-sustainable-activities_en; (b) Use of the EU taxonomy for sustainable activities is likely to stifle important innovations, including in green technology; (c) On balance, use of the taxonomy in EU directives and regulation is likely to be net beneficial to European citizens. 
Europe

Fiscal Rules

This European survey examines (a) Fiscal rules on budget deficits and public debt levels are an essential part of a sound fiscal framework; (b) Since the inception of the Stability and Growth Pact, budget deficits in Europe have been measurably lower, on average, than would have been the case without common budget rules; (c) Since the inception of the Stability and Growth Pact, the path of GDP growth in Europe has been measurably more stable than would have been the case without common budget rules 
US

Fiscal Rules

This US survey examines (a) Fiscal rules on budget deficits and public debt levels are an essential part of a sound fiscal framework; (b) Since the inception of the Stability and Growth Pact, budget deficits in Europe have been measurably lower, on average, than would have been the case without common budget rules; (c) Since the inception of the Stability and Growth Pact, the path of GDP growth in Europe has been measurably more stable than would have been the case without common budget rules