Workshop on New Industrial Policy Tools to Support European Economic Convergence
32 rue de Babylone, 75007 Paris 17 OCTOBER, 2022
Summary The European Union has lagged behind the United-States in terms of economic growth and GDP per capita. Within the EU, progress in regional convergence has also been uneven over the last two decades. While Central and Eastern European countries have been catching up, Southern member states have often lost ground, especially after the global financial crisis. Furthermore, within most countries, gaps between large cities and rural areas have widened. Some challenges to convergence have stemmed from worldwide factors – such as globalisation, digitalisation, global warming, and, more recently, COVID19 – but others are specific to Europe, like incomplete financial integration, less effective fiscal governance and subpar innovation performance. In this context, there is a growing debate on the negative impact of deindustrialisation in Europe and how new industrial policies could help reverse this phenomenon. The debate became even more pressing given the pandemic and recent geopolitical tensions.
Note: this workshop will be organised as a roundtable where all participants are expected to share their views. The role of the speakers and discussants is to kick-start the discussion.
A critical question is whether Europe should remain dependent on certain areas of the globe for the production of essential materials/components (e.g. chips). The objective of this workshop is to analyse how new industrial policy tools could help resume convergence and innovation in Europe. It will also analyse how such policies could help to lessen dependencies from global supply chains. The efficiency of such policies will be assessed taking into account the benefits of maintaining open and competitive markets while responding to new challenges, such as digitalisation or foreign subsidies. A particularly sensitive issue is the modernisation of merger control. Through dynamic discussions and concrete proposals, this workshop will be the opportunity to advance the reflection on the type of industrial policy Europe should develop and how it should be coordinated with trade and competition policies.
Programme 12:30: Lunch
14:00 Introductory remarks: Gilles de Margerie & Isabell Koske 14:15 Session 1: Can new industrial policy tools help Europe resume convergence and innovation? Is de-industrialisation a factor explaining the lack of innovation and growth in Europe? Can it also explain growing divergences within Europe? Can modern approaches to industrial policies, such as “place-based” policies, help the emergence of competitive companies and activities? Can industrial policy facilitate the decarbonization of the economy? Which industrial policies should be conducted at the European level? Should regional policies be adjusted to take into account industrial challenges? Chair: Chiara Criscuolo Kick-off speeches (8 mn each): Speaker 1: Philippe Aghion Speaker 2: Dani Rodrik Speaker 3: Josefina Monteagudo Speaker 4: David Pappie Speaker 5: Agnès Bénassy-Quéré Speaker 6: Reinhilde Veugelers General discussion (60 mn) 16:10 Coffee break
16:25 Session 2: Can industrial policy be consistent with open and competitive markets? How to ensure that industrial policy does not conflict with competition policy? Can we find complementarities between competition and industrial policies? How to prevent industrial policies from being captured by vested interests? Can industrial policy be compatible with international trade rules? How to take into account new challenges posed by digitalisation? Chair: Philippe Martin Kick-off speeches (8 mn each): Speaker 1: Jörg Kukies Speaker 2: Mathias Dewatripont Speaker 3: Astrid Cousin Speaker 4: Benoît Coeuré Speaker 5: Anne Perrot Speaker 6: Maria Letizia Giorgetti General discussion (60 mn)
18:20 Conclusion: Jeromin Zettelmeyer 18:30 End
Access by invitation only.
...................................... For any questions please contact: Emily Derry, tel. : +(33-1) 45 24 87 26 Email : emily.derry@oecd.org