Why does the price of petrol not fall when oil prices drop? Why are wages in Italy among the lowest in Europe? Why is income from work taxed more heavily than capital? And where does the money we pay in taxes actually go?
In Economics made easy, Carlo Cottarelli – one of Italy’s most prominent economists – tackles the questions people encounter every day, when reading the news, buying groceries or paying taxes, and turns them into a clear and engaging guide to understanding how the economy really works. Moving away from technical jargon, formulas, and abstract models, the book starts from real-life doubts and dismantles some of the most persistent misconceptions about public debt, inflation, unemployment, the cost of politics, and the functioning of financial systems.

With clarity and precision – but without oversimplifying – Carlo Cottarelli, former Director of the Fiscal Affairs Department at the International Monetary Fund and currently Director of the Observatory on Italian Public Accounts at Università Cattolica in Milan, explains key mechanisms such as taxation, public spending, and economic growth, while also addressing why economists do not (always) predict crises. By blending practical examples with solid economic thinking, Cottarelli provides readers with the tools to better interpret the world around them. 

“GDP measures everything, in short, except what makes life worth living” said Bob Kennedy, and that is partly true, but perhaps it is better to understand how it works than to demonise it. That is why it is useful to finally have access to an economics that is easy for everyone to understand.

Do you want to know more about the author and keynote speaker Carlo Cottarelli?
Visit his page!