The Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN) is a
Directorate-General
Within the European Union, Directorates-General are departments with specific zones of responsibility, the equivalent of ministries at a national level. Most are headed by a European Commissioner, responsible for the general direction of the Dir ...
of the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
. The DG ECFIN is located in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
, and
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. Its main responsibility is to encourage the development of
Economic and Monetary Union
An economic and monetary union (EMU) is a type of trade bloc that features a combination of a common market, customs union, and monetary union. Established via a trade pact, an EMU constitutes the sixth of seven stages in the process of economic ...
both inside and outside the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
, by advancing economic policy coordination, conducting economic surveillance and providing policy assessment and advice.
Policy areas
The Directorate-General's policy areas include:
* Economic surveillance (
euro area and
EU)
** Monitoring of the economy of the
euro area and of the
EU
** Key indicators
** Economic forecasts (spring and autumn)
** Business and consumer surveys
** Annual Review on the EU economy
**
Convergence
Convergence may refer to:
Arts and media Literature
*''Convergence'' (book series), edited by Ruth Nanda Anshen
*Convergence (comics), "Convergence" (comics), two separate story lines published by DC Comics:
**A four-part crossover storyline that ...
reports
* Monitoring budgetary policy and public finances
**
Stability and Growth Pact
The Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) is an agreement, among all of the 27 member states of the European Union, to facilitate and maintain the stability of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Based primarily on Articles 121 and 126 of the Trea ...
(SGP) and fiscal surveillance
** Annual « Public Finance Report »
** Contribution of public finances to
economic growth
Economic growth can be defined as the increase or improvement in the inflation-adjusted market value of the goods and services produced by an economy in a financial year. Statisticians conventionally measure such growth as the percent rate of ...
and
employment
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...
** The consequences of
ageing
Ageing ( BE) or aging ( AE) is the process of becoming older. The term refers mainly to humans, many other animals, and fungi, whereas for example, bacteria, perennial plants and some simple animals are potentially biologically immortal. In ...
* Economic policy coordination
**
BEPG (Broad Economic Policy Guidelines, described as the EU's Stability and Growth Pact) (incl. Implementation report)
** Structural reforms
** Luxembourg, Cardiff and Cologne processes
** Assessing the policy-mix in the
euro area
* The
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
: legal, practical and institutional aspects
** Legal and institutional issues of the
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
**
Euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
coins
** Update and maintenance of the
Commission's euro web site
* Financial markets and capital movement
** Integration of EU financial markets
** Freedom of capital movements
* Economic relations with third countries
** Accession countries: economic aspects of enlargement
**
G7 Countries
**
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
** Western Balkan Countries, Mediterranean Countries, and development issues
** Macro-financial assistance to third countries
** Relations with international financial institutions (
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...
,
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
,
EBRD
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is an international financial institution founded in 1991. As a multilateral developmental investment bank, the EBRD uses investment as a tool to build market economies. Initially foc ...
,...)
* Financing
** Investment Financing
**
EIB
**
EIF
** Funding Programmes for
SME
SME may refer to:
Economics
* Small and medium-sized enterprises
* Socialist market economy, an economic system of China
Organizations Music
* SME Limited, UK audio turntable manufacturer
* Sony Music Entertainment, US
* Spontaneous Music Ensembl ...
s
** Funding for
Trans-European Networks
The Trans-European Networks (TEN) were created by the European Union by Articles 154–156 of the Treaty of Rome (1957), with the stated goals of the creation of an internal market and the reinforcement of economic and social cohesion. To various ...
**
Euratom
The European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom) is an international organisation established by the Euratom Treaty on 25 March 1957 with the original purpose of creating a specialist market for nuclear power in Europe, by developing nucl ...
loans
** Opinions and surveys on investments for the
European Coal and Steel Community
The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a European organization created after World War II to regulate the coal and steel industries. It was formally established in 1951 by the Treaty of Paris, signed by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembo ...
(ECSC)
See also
*
European Commissioner for Economy
The European Commissioner for Economy is a member of the European Commission. The current Economy Commissioner is Paolo Gentiloni.
From 2014 to 2019 the post was named ''Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs''. U ...
*
Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union
The economic and monetary union (EMU) of the European Union is a group of policies aimed at converging the economies of member states of the European Union at three stages.
There are three stages of the EMU, each of which consists of progr ...
*
Economy of the European Union
The economy of the European Union is the joint economy of the member states of the European Union (EU). It is the third largest economy in the world in nominal terms, after the United States and China, and the third one in purchasing power p ...
*
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is a legal agreement between many countries, whose overall purpose was to promote international trade by reducing or eliminating trade barriers such as tariffs or quotas. According to its pre ...
(GATT)
*
United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference
The Bretton Woods Conference, formally known as the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, was the gathering of 730 delegates from all 44 Allied nations at the Mount Washington Hotel, situated in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United ...
(Bretton Woods)
External links
Homepage of ECFIN
:''This article incorporates information fro
o
the European Union web site According t
reproduction is authorised, provided the source is acknowledged.''
Economic and Financial Affairs
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