: The Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK)

The Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK) is an independent academic institute within the Hans-Böckler-Foundation, a non-profit organisation fostering co-determination and promoting research and academic study. The Foundation is linked to the German Confederation of Trade Unions (DGB). The IMK was founded in 2005 to strengthen the macroeconomic perspective both in economic research and in the economic policy debate. The IMK analyses business cycle developments and conducts economic policy research, notably on fiscal and monetary policy, labour markets, income distribution and financial markets. The Institute seeks to address the challenges facing macroeconomics and economic policy in the wake of the global financial crisis.

IMK Titegrafik des Instituts

Source: HBS

Shaping macroeconomics in times of global transformation: 30 years of FMM

This year´s conference will be held on the dates of 22 till 24 October 2026. In the 1990s, supply-side economics dominated both economic theory and policy worldwide. Government intervention and demand management were widely viewed as outdated, and the United States appeared to be the unquestioned role model for economic success, with the US dollar as the natural global currency. Three decades and several crises later, the global economic landscape has changed profoundly. Free trade is increasingly replaced by trade restrictions and geopolitical rivalries, even among former allies. While this shift undoubtedly creates risks, it may also open opportunities, for example through new alliances focused on climate protection and sustainable development. At the same time, the emergence of a multipolar world is reshaping the international monetary system and may even question the Dollar dominance.

to the Conference Website

10th International FMM Summer School

The summer school aims at providing an introduction to Keynesian macroeconomics and to the problems of European economic policies to interested graduate students (MA and PhD) and junior researchers. It will consist of overview lectures, a panel discussion, student study groups, an SFC lab, and a poster session.

to the application

Forum for Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies

The FMM aims to be both a platform for discussions about economic theory as well as a forum for economic policy debates. The forum seeks to promote an exchange between competing theoretical paradigms.

FMM Homepage

Publications

The IMK regularly publishes in several of its own publication series.

read here

Current Publications

  • Sandrine Levasseur : Electric mobility in Europe: reconciling the ecological transition with industrial survival

    The EU faces rising pressure on its EV transition. An “electrification shock” is needed to scale production, strengthen Europe’s industrial base, and maintain its path toward transport decarbonisation.

    to the IMK Study 104 

  • Giovanna Ciaffi, Matteo Deleidi, Mariana Mazzucato : Directed Innovation Policies and the Supermultiplier: New Evidence

    This paper investigates the macroeconomic effects of public R&D investment in the US economy from 1947 to 2018, employing alternative empirical approaches based on Structural VARs, pure shocks derived from a counterfactual VAR, and Instrumental-Variable Local Projections.

    to the FMM Working Paper No. 122 

  • Matthieu Bordenave, Giovanna Ciaffi : Measuring Green Fiscal Multipliers: Heterogeneity in European Countries

    This paper evaluates the macroeconomic impact of green public spending by quantifying the responses of GDP, private investment, employment, and labour productivity across 30 European countries from 1995 to 2020.

    to the FMM Working Paper No. 121 

  • Benjamin Jungmann, Eckhard Hein, Juan Manuel Campana : A post-Keynesian open economy model of conflict inflation, distribution, employment, and external balance

    Post-Keynesian conflict inflation models have received renewed attention in the course of the recent inflationary processes related to the recovery from the Covid-19 crisis in 2020 and the hike of energy prices in the context of the start of the Russian war on Ukraine in 2022.

    to the FMM Working Paper No. 120 

  • Ekaterina Jürgens, Sebastian Gechert : Passing the partisan filter: Political narratives, partisan bias and opinions on public finances

    This paper examines how political partisanship and campaign narratives shape German voters’ views on public finances, finding no average narrative effect but evidence that partisan preferences strongly condition preferences, supporting the theory of partisan bias and selective influence of emotionally charged narratives.

    to the IMK Working Paper No. 227 

  • Robert A. Blecker : Conflict and cooperation in international trade: post-Keynesian perspectives

    The revival of economic nationalism poses a challenge to neoclassical orthodoxy, which claims that liberalized international trade is (subject to a few recognized exceptions) inherently cooperative and mutually beneficial. Post-Keynesian open economy models demonstrate that international trade relations can be conflictive under certain conditions.

    to the FMM Working Paper No. 119 

Special offers

  • : FORUM FOR MACROECONOMICS AND MACROECONOMIC POLICIES

    The Forum for Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies (FMM) aims to be both a platform for discussions about economic theory as well as a forum for economic policy debates. In particular, the forum seeks to promote an exchange between competing theoretical paradigms.

    to the FMM Site