· Highlights of this issue

· Financial Crises - 'Asian Flu' Lessons

The following conferences were discussed in this issue:

· Real Exchange Rates - Recent Theories and evidence

· Currency Crises - Czech Lessons

The following workshops were discussed in this issue:

· Rising Inequalities - Social Inequalities and Mobility

· Industrial Location - The Labour Cost-Product Quality nexus

· Gloabalization - Regional Integration and Development Policy

The following discussion meetings were discussed in this issue:

· EMU - Exchange Rate Policy Options

· European Regional Policy - Lesson from Location Theory

· 'Jobs For Life - Is the End in Sight?

· Systematic Pension Reforms - Lessons from recent Experience

· EU Enlargement - Implications for East-West Trade

The following CEPR Books can be ordered:

· Economic Policy 25

· Economic Policy 26

The following Discussion Papers were discussed in this issue:

· Methods of Privatization: Auctions, Bargaining and Give-Aways by Klaus M Schmidt and Monika Schnitzer

· The Political Economy of Mass Privatization and the Risk of Expropriation by Klaus M Schmidt

· On the Sources of Convergence: A Close Look at the Spanish Regions by Angel de la Fuente

· Endogenous Mergers in Concentrated Markets by Henrik Horn and Lars Persson

· Inventory Behaviour: A Comparative Study of UK and Japanese Firms by Jenny Corbett, Donald Hay and Helen Louri

· Competing for Endorsements by Gene M Grossman and Elhanan Helpman

· Out in the Sunshine? Outsiders, Insiders, and the United States in 1998 by Fabio Ghironi and Francesco Giavazzi

· A Portfolio Approach to a Cross-sectoral and Cross-National Investment Strategy in Transition Economies by Willem H Buiter, Ricardo Lago and Hélène Rey

· Strategic Trade Policy When Firms Have Different Efficiency Levels by Dermot Leahy and Catia Montagna

· On the Strategic Community Development by J Vernon Henderson and Jacques-François Thisse

· Human Capital and Macroeconomic Growth: Austria and Germany 1960-1992 by Reinhard Koman and Dalia Marin

· Will Gradualism Work When Shock Therapy Doesn't? by Vivek H Dehejia

· Has Work Sharing Worked in Germany? by Jennifer Hunt

· Country Size and Comparative Advantage: An Empirical Study by Johan Torstensson

· Electoral Institutions, Cabinet Negotiations, and Budget Deficits within the European Union by Mark Hallerberg and Jürgen von Hagen

· New Techniques to Extract Market Expectations from Financial Instruments by Paul Sóderlind and Lars E O Svensson

· Income Persistence and Macro-Policy Feedbacks in the United States by John Muellbauer

· EMU: Countries or Regions? Lessons from the EMS Experience by Antonio Fatás

· Applications to the US Disability Program: A Semiparametric Approach by Regina T Riphahn and Brent Kreider

· Population Growth, Trade Policy, and Migration Incentives by Joseph F Francois and Douglas Nelson

· Monetary Integration and Economic Convergence by Anne Sibert

· Inflation Targets and Contracts with Uncertain Central Banker Preferences by Roel M W J Beetsma and Henrik Jensen

· Centralized Bargaining, Multi-Tasking, and Work Incentives by Assar Lindbeck and Dennis J Snower

· The Generalized War of Attrition by Jeremy Bulow and Paul Klemperer

· Strategic Behaviour Under European Antidumping Rules by Wilfried Pauwels, Hylke Vandenbussche and Marcel Weverbergh

· Dual Labour Markets, Urban Unemployment and Multicentric Cities by Tony E Smith and Yves Zenou

· Industrial Structure, Menu Costs and the Non-Neutrality of Money by Huw David Dixon and Claus Thustrup Hansen

· Structural Change and International Trade by Dan Ben-David and David H Papell

· Trade in Nominal Assets and Net International Capital Flows by Philippe Bacchetta and Eric van Wincoop

· The Burden and Disincentive Effects of Hungarian Personal Taxes 1988-96 by David M G Newbery and Tamás Révész

· The Rise and Persistence of Rigidities by Gilles Saint-Paul

· Efficient Wage Dispersion by Daron Acemoglu and Robert Shimer

· Training and Unions by Alison L Booth and Monojit Chatterji

· Lobbying and the Structure of Protection by Olivier Cadot, Jaime de Melo and Marcelo Olarreaga

· The Rise and Fall of Regional Inequalities by Diego Puga

· Domino Effects in Western European Trade, 1960-92 by André Sapir

· Capital Mobility and the Output-Inflation Tradeoff by Prakash Loungani, Assaf Razin and Chi-Wa Yuen

· South-North Refugee Migration: Lessons for Development Cooperation by Ralph Rotte, Michael Vogler and Klaus F Zimmermann

· From Learning to Partnership. Multinational R&D Cooperation in Developing Countries by Giorgio Barba Navaretti and Carlo Carraro

· The New Geography of Eastern European Trade by Mathilde Maurel and Guillaume Cheikbossian

· The Total Cost of Trading Belgian Shares: Brussels versus London by Hans Degryse

· Modelling Work-Related Training and Training Effects Using Count Data Techniques by Wiji Arulampalam, Alison L Booth and Peter Elias

· Tax Competition for Foreign Direct Investment by Andreas Haufler and Ian Wooton

· Product Standards Coalitions in a Market without Borders by Alessandra Casella

· Policy Complementarities: The Case for Fundamental Labour Market Reform by David T Coe and Dennis J Snower