Major industrial countries have shown strikingly different performances in recent years. Between 1982 and 1987 . employment in the United States and Japan increased by 13 and 6 per cent respectively but only by 2 per cent in Western Europe. While unemployment rates in America and Japan are presently almost as low as they were in the late 1970s when the cyclical position was about the same . they are double as high as they were then in Western Europe. Correspondingly, GNP growth in Western Europe was low by past and international standards.

Preface / I. Herbert Giersch -- Microeconomic IIIUII for Europe in the 1980s: Cln the NAIRU Be Tamed? / Jean Waelbroeck -- Comment / William A. Niskanen --II. The Case for Rules in the Conduct of Monetary Policy: A Concrete Example / Bennett T. McCallum -- The Rules-venut-Discretion Debate in the Light of Recent Experience / Alan S. Blinder -- Comments Robert J. Gordon, Pascal Salin, Joachim Scheide and Leland B. Yeager -- Summary of the Discusion -- Ill. Wage Gaps venus Output Gaps: Is There a Common Story for AU of Europe? / Robert J. Gordon -- Compositional Effec:tl end Unemployment in the United States and Europe / Sean Holly/Peter Smith -- Comments / Gerd Hansen and Patrick Minford -- Summary of the Discusion -- IV. Labor MMcet Berrien to More Employment: Causes for an Incrrease of the Natural Rate? The Case of West Germany Distortions, Incentives, and Growth / RUdiger Soltwedel and Peter Trapp Martin J. Bailey -- Comments / Emil-Maria Claassen, Gerhard Fels and Leland B. Yeager -- Summary of the Discusion -- v. Money Supply venus Exchange-Rate Tlll'gfting: An Asymmetry between the United States and Other Industrial Economies / Ronald I. McKinnon -- Comments / Hermann-Josef Dudler and Manfred J. M. Neumann -- Summary of the Discusion -- IV -- VI. Macroeconomic Policy Coordination: Where Should We Stand? / Gilles Oudiz -- Comments / Pascal Salin, Roland Vaubel and Manfred Willms -- Summary of the Discussion -- VII. The Right Combination of Demand and Supply Policies: The Case for a Two-Handed Approach / Willem H. Buiter -- Comments / Klaus-Werner Schatz Christian Seidl -- Summary of the Discussion -- VIII. Lessons for Europe / Juergen B. Donges -- List of Contributon