Wird Island endlich günstiger?

Die Geopolitik ist nur ein Argument für den EU-Beitritt. Zwar ist Island seit 1994 Mitglied im Europäischen Wirtschaftsraum und damit auch Teil des Binnenmarktes. EU-Bürger können in Island arbeiten, Isländer in Deutschland studieren. Trotzdem gibt es weiterhin Zölle, die wegfallen würden. Das Land könnte von internationalen Handelsabkommen profitieren und die europäische Wirtschaftspolitik mitbestimmen.

English summary:

In a recent article in the German weekly DIE ZEIT, the renowned Icelandic economist Thorvaldur Gylfason speaks out clearly about Iceland’s persistent inflation and argues in favor of adopting the euro.

The economist places Iceland’s continuing economic instability in its historical and political context as follows:

• Historical failure: Gylfason describes Iceland as an ideal candidate for the euro because of its “long historical failure to keep inflation under control.”
• Criticism of the devaluation mechanism: In the past, when profits in the fishing industry declined, business leaders would call the government. The government would then instruct the central bank to devalue the Icelandic króna. While this made exports cheaper, over the longer term it resulted in massive inflation.
• The current situation: While prices in Germany have risen by 44 percent since the financial crisis, they have more than doubled in Iceland over the same period. For years, the Central Bank has substantially overshot its inflation target of 2.5 percent.

The background to the interview is the forthcoming referendum on EU accession, in which Icelanders will vote on whether the country should resume the accession negotiations with the European Union that were halted in 2013.