Prof. Dr. Gabriel Felbermayr

Prof. Dr. Gabriel Felbermayr is a distinguished Austrian economist, a sought-after commentator, and, since October 1, 2021, the director of the Austrian Institute of Economic Research, Austria’s largest think tank. He is also a professor at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and, since 2026, a member of the German Council of Economic Experts. Prior to that, he served as president of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) since 2019. At the same time, he held a chair in economics, with a focus on economic policy, at Christian-Albrechts University in Kiel. In addition to German, he speaks Italian, French, and English.
His research and advisory work focuses on issues of international trade theory and policy, labor market research, European economic integration, and current topics in economic policy. He has published numerous articles in international academic journals, policy briefs, and newspapers. His research has been recognized with various awards.

From 2010 to 2019, he worked at the Ifo Institute for Economic Research at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, where he was also a full professor (endowed chair since 2011) of International Economics (economics, with a focus on real and monetary international economics). As director of the Ifo Institute’s Center for International Economics, he also researched the implications of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and has been critical of its outcomes.
From 1995 to 2000, he studied economics and international trade at Johannes Kepler University in Linz (Master’s degree with honors). This was followed by research at the European University Institute in Florence (Ph.D. in 2004). From 2003 to May 2004, Prof. Felbermayr served as a university assistant (Linz); until 2005, he worked as an associate consultant for McKinsey & Company (Vienna); and beginning in 2005, he served as a temporary academic advisor at the Eberhard Karls University (Tübingen), where he completed his habilitation (economics) in 2008. He was appointed to the professorship in economics, specializing in international trade, at the University of Hohenheim (2009–2010).

Prof. Felbermayr is regarded as demanding, innovative, confident, and ambitious. He represents a new generation of economists who are less ideological but hold firm convictions. The era of dogma is over. Economics must be based on data, not on fundamental beliefs. He is a master at dealing with the media.
Other important roles and positions include: Chair of the Statistics Council at Statistics Austria; President (2026) and Founding President (2022–23) of the “Austria Supply Chain Intelligence Institute” (ASCII); Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board and member of the Board of Trustees of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW); and member of the Research Advisory Board of the German Institute for Political and Economic Research (SWP). His expertise is sought after on the editorial boards of “Empirica,” the “Journal of Economic Integration,” and “The World Economy.”

He is a staunch European (“If we want to be a European democracy, then overcoming nationalism is a central task.”). When it comes to climate policy, he prioritizes a European solution. He opposes protectionism and questions the economic pressure being exerted on Russia.