Global imbalances and Europe: a fresh perspective
Bruegel’s 20th anniversary event in Paris, jointly organised with the Banque de France and the CEPR
Speakers
Ravi Balakrishnan
Bruegel Visiting Fellow
Charlotte Emlinger
Economist, CEPII
Jason Furman
Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy, Harvard University
Olivier Garnier
Director General Statistics, Economics and International, Banque de France
Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas
Economic Counsellor and Director of the Research Department, International Monetary Fund
Sébastien Jean
Professor of economics, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
Kevin Lefebvre
Economist, CEPII
Michala Marcussen
Global Head of Economics, Société Générale, Corporate and Investment Banking
Isabelle Mejean
Professor, Department of Economics, Sciences Po
Alexandre Mendonça
Bruegel Affiliate Fellow
Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti
Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution
CEPR
Gilles Moëc
Chief Economist, AXA
Maurice Obstfeld
Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics
Camille Reverdy
Bruegel Affiliate Fellow
Hélène Rey
Professor of Economics, London Business School
Isabel Vansteenkiste
Director General, International & European relations, European Central Bank
Vincent Vicard
Deputy Director, CEPII
François Villeroy de Galhau
Governor, Banque de France
Beatrice Weder di Mauro
President, Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)
Beth Anne Wilson
Director of the Division of International Finance, Federal Reserve Board
Jeromin Zettelmeyer
Bruegel Director
Agenda
Welcome and keynote
14:30-15:15- Chair: Hélène Rey, Professor of Economics, London Business School
Paper presenter:
Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas (Economic Counsellor and Director of the Research Department, International Monetary Fund)— Trade, Industrial Policies and Global Imbalances
Discussant:
Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti (Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution, and CEPR)
Agenda
Session 1. Global imbalances: causes and transatlantic perspectives
15:15-16:45- Chair: Agnès Bénassy-Quéré, Member of the Board
Paper presenters:
Maurice Obstfeld (Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economic; UC Berkeley) —Causes of global imbalances
Jason Furman (Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy, Harvard University; PIIE) — Made in America? The U.S. Drivers of Global Imbalances
Zsolt Darvas, Camille Reverdy, Alexandre Mendonça and Jeromin Zettelmeyer (Bruegel and CEPR) — The EU current account: present, future, and policy.
Discussants:
Ravi Balakrishnan (Visiting fellow, Bruegel)
Olivier Garnier (Director General Statistics, Economics and International, Banque de France)
Isabel Vansteenkiste (Director General, International & European relations, European Central Bank)
Agenda
Coffee Break
16:45-17:00Agenda
Session 2: New frontiers and microeconomic issues
17:00-18:30- Chair: Beatrice Weder di Mauro, President, Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)
Paper presenters:
Charlotte Emlinger, Kevin Lefebvre, Isabelle Mejean, and Vincent Vicard (Sciences Po and CEPR). EU under Pressure? Exploring Chinese trade deflection.
Sébastien Jean (Professor of economics, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers) — Global imbalances, industrial policies and the (reverse) transfer problem
Gilles Moëc (Chief Economist, AXA) — Stablecoins and global imbalances
Discussants:
Michala Marcussen (Global Head of Economics, Société Générale, Corporate and Investment Banking)
André Sapir (Bruegel, ULB and CEPR)
Beth Anne Wilson (Director of the Division of International Finance, Federal Reserve Board)
Agenda
Closing fireside chat
18:30-19:00- Chair: Jeromin Zettelmeyer, Bruegel Director
- François Villeroy de Galhau, Governor, Banque de France
The conference took place in the afternoon of January 7, 2026, immediately following the conclusion of a G7 conference on the international monetary system and international payments. Structured around two sessions, the event echoed the forthcoming CEPR–Bruegel Paris Report, which focused on the issue of global imbalances.
The conference addressed various dimensions of global imbalances—including capital flows and exchange rates, as well as trade, fiscal, and industrial aspects—while providing both an international and a European perspective on these issues.
In the frame of Bruegel's 20th Anniversary celebrations we are organising a series of events in our members states, to bring important European conversations to the capitals and hear views from national policy makers and experts on potential challenges and solutions.
You can see all of Bruegel's 20th Anniversary news and activities on our dedicated page.
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