The industrial world enjoys a rare combination of growth and low inflation; the 'Washington consensus,' a model of economic development that emphasizes macroeconomic discipline and open markets, is being adopted by more countries.

German predominance is not all-encompassing. In foreign affairs and military matters, for instance, France and Britain still play a much bigger role. But across a large swathe of European policy, Germany has become much more than a first among equals.

The problem with one single minimum wage is that you don't allow for younger people, who are less skilled and maybe more easily pushed out of the job market, or that the minimum wage should vary for different regions.

The impact of a minimum wage depends on how high it is to average wages. If you have too high a minimum wage, it will hurt job creation, and you will have negative job effects.

There are people who have money and people who are rich.

I didn't want to write a book that suggested that magic good/technology bad.

Mobile technology makes us ever more mobile, increasingly permitting not just easier movement around a home base but permanent international relocation.

I'm afraid sometimes certain individual cases of defaults are unavoidable. What we should do is to step up monitoring, properly handle relevant matters, and ensure there is no regional and systemic financial risk.