2017 A n n u a l R e p o r t Presented at the 69th ifo Annual Meeting on 28 June 2018 Published in 2018 for the ifo Institute Poschingerstr. 5, 81679 Munich, Postbox 860460, 81631 Munich, Germany Phone: +49/(0)89/9224-0, Fax: +49/(0)89/985369 Internet: http://www.cesifo-group.de; email: [email protected] ISSN: 2194-928X Editor: Marga Jennewein Translations: Lisa Giani Contini Printing: ifo Institute ifo Annual Report 2017 Page The Goals and Tasks of the ifo Institute . 7 Report of the Executive Board . 10 Research and Service Departments ifo Center for Public Finance and Political Economy . 23 ifo Center for Labour and Demographic Economics . 27 ifo Center for the Economics of Education . 31 ifo Center for Industrial Organisation and New Technologies . 43 ifo Center for Energy, Climate and Exhaustible Resources . 55 ifo Center for International Economics . 62 ifo Center for Macroeconomics and Surveys . 72 ifo Center for International Institutional Comparisons and Migration Research . 85 ifo Center of Excellence for Migration and Integration Research – CEMIR . 89 Research Group Taxation an Fiscal Policy . 90 Library . 94 Press, Publications, Conferences . 95 Dresden Branch . 105 Munich Society for the Promotion of Economic Research – CESifo GmbH . 117 Conferences, Publications and External Relations of the ifo Institute . 123 Personnel, Finances and Organisational Bodies Personnel Development . 129 Financial Development . 135 Organisation of the ifo Institute . 138 ifo Annual Report 2017 3 The ifo Institute 2017 The Goals and Tasks of ifo Institute Since its foundation in January 1949 ifo has provided as a bridge between academic research and practical both information and research, hence its name ifo = politics. It concentrates on applied, policy-oriented Information and Forschung (research). Its legal form is economic research with the goal of achieving greater that of a registered, non-profi t association. The Ifo Insti- stability, growth and societal cohesion. The research of tute is one of Europe’s leading economic research insti- the ifo Institute increasingly deals with European and Growing focus on tutes and is also the most frequently cited institute in the global issues. It strives to meet the highest academic European and global media. A cooperation agreement links ifo closely with the standards and contributes to policy advice and the issues University of Munich (LMU), and in 2002 ifo was off icially economic-policy debate. It is committed to providing proclaimed an “Institute at the University of Munich”. services for research and the general public. The Center for Economic Studies (CES) of the LMU, the Research at the Ifo Institute is guided by setting socially ifo Institute and the Munich Society for the Promotion recognised goals. These targets include maintaining the of Economics – CESifo GmbH pool their resources with- performance levels of the social market economy, rising in the CESifo Group to form an international research to the demographic challenges ahead, ensuring the sta- alliance. The group aims to enrich the public debate bility of the economy and the fi nancial system, surviv- based on excellent theoretical and empirical econom- ing global competition against a background of growing ics research, to support economic policy-making de- technological change and protecting the environment. cisions with high-quality policy advice, and to provide the public with economic information like the ifo Busi- Like all other Leibniz institutions, the ifo Institute is ness Climate Index. One of ifos’s central tasks is also to subject to tough evaluations that are conducted once promote junior economists. It cooperates closely with every seven years by the Leibniz Association Senate. ifo undergoes regular the LMU in this area, which involves signifi cant contri- As in past evaluations, the ifo Institute also performed evaluations butions to teaching activities. excellently in its latest evaluation, which was com- pleted with the Statement of the Leibniz Association As a member of the Leibniz Association the ifo Institute dated 17 July 2013. is an institution that receives public funding from the federal and state governments on the basis of Article In this statement the Leibniz Senate established that 91b of the German Constitution. On 1 September 2011 the ifo Institute had very successfully achieved its man- the name of the ifo Institute was modifi ed by means of date of conducting: “applied policy-oriented economic a change to its Articles of Association. Since then its of- research, providing research results, data and infor- fi cial name has been: ifo Institute – Leibniz Institute for mation to interested individuals from academia, busi- Economic Research at the University of Munich. ness, politics and the general public.” It found that the ifo Institute makes: “signifi cant research contributions The ifo Institute also coordinates the European re- that are internationally recognised and acts as an im- search network EconPol Europe – European Network for portant bridge between academic research and policy Economic and Fiscal Policy Research – a collaboration of advisory work […] The amount of research, service and policy-oriented research university and non-university advisory work done has developed excellently. The ifo research institutes, which are contributing their scien- Institute is now one of Europe’s leading economic re- tifi c expertise help shape the future European Union. search institutes.” The network was founded by the ifo Institute in spring 2017 on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Fi- The Leibniz Senate and the international group of ex- nance together with eight other renowned European re- perts commissioned by it attest the institute’s excellent search institutes as the new voice of science in Europe. performance at all levels and in all fi elds of work – from The aim of this network is to promote the further de- research and policy advisory work to services, the pro- ifo strives for velopment of European Economic and Monetary Union motion of junior researchers and infrastructure. The excellence in research with scientifi c analyses and policy recommendations. work done in the ifo Institute’s eight research depart- ments was evaluated as very good overall, and as excel- ifo is an independent institution that makes its services lent in some cases. The quantity and quality of the in- available to all groups of society regardless of their po- stitute’s publications has improved further since the last litical orientation. It is a European think tank that serves evaluation and is now excellent. ifo Annual Report 2017 7 THE GOALS AND TASKS OF THE IFO INSTITUTE ifo’s 8 research centers – Public Finance and Political ic policy ideas and concepts. With its research results Economy, Labour and Demographic Economics, The and policy recommendations, it is helping to develop Economics of Education, Industrial Organisation and reform ideas and make Germany fi t for the future.” ifo’s New Technologies, Energy, Climate and Resources, policy work is also refl ected in a large number of expert International Economics, International Institutional reports commissioned by public and private sector cli- Comparisons and Migration Research and Macroeco- ents on topical economic policy issues. ifo was among nomics and Surveys – cover research topics that are the institutes to submit a successful bid for the joint also highly relevant for policy advice. The ifo Dresden economic forecast tender, issued for the fi rst time at branch, founded in 1993, works in areas that are of spe- a European level in 2007; and bid successfully again in cial interest to the Free State of Saxony, from which it the 2010 and 2013 tenders. The ifo Institute also makes receives its funding. its expertise available to the public sector institutions of other countries. In its international activities the ifo Institute cooper- ates very closely with CESifo GmbH and the CESifo In addition to its research and policy advice, the ifo In- researcher network supervised by the latter. As the stitute also provides the public with data, information Close cooperation Leibniz Senate confi rmed in its Statement of 17 July and other services. This takes place especially in con- with CESifo 2013, CESifo GmbH has an important role to play in the nection with its project-related and its regular surveys cooperation between the ifo Institute and the Center of national and international business. Every month, for Economic Studies (CES) at the LMU. The coopera- the ifo Business Climate Index, an established leading tion with CESifo is an important element in the inter- indicator of the business cycle derived from the ifo Busi- national profi le of the scientifi c research conducted by ness Survey, is awaited with great anticipation by the ifo and the LMU. media, investors, and business leaders. The results of the ifo World Economic Survey, the Institute’s quarterly ifo’s junior research staff also benefi t tremendously poll of international economic activity in 120 countries, from the network eff ects within the CESifo Group. ifo are published in the ifo World Economic Survey, a jour- employs more than 50 doctoral students, most of which nal launched in 2002. Since its launch in 1999, the Da- participate in the institute’s graduate programme and tabase for Institutional Comparisons in Europe (DICE), are also members of the Munich Graduate School of which currently contains around 3,800 tables, graphs Economics (MGSE) at the University of Munich. Ifo’s and short reports, has grown signifi cantly and enriched doctoral programme is particularly attractive thanks the range of services provided by the ifo Institute. to the fact that it combines academic research with the institute’s practical, policy-orientation. ifo also off ers a broad range of information via the in- ternet, which are available in German and English, and The scientifi c research carried out at the ifo Institute is publishes several journals and book series.