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The Euro and Its Guardian of Stability--The Fiction and Reality of the 10th Anniversary Blast

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  • Jorg Bibow

Abstract

This paper investigates why Europe fared particularly poorly in the global economic crisis that began in August 2007. It questions the self-portrait of Europe as the victim of external shocks, pushed off track by reckless policies pursued elsewhere. It argues instead that Europe had not only contributed handsomely to the buildup of global imbalances since the 1990s and experienced their implosive unwinding as an internal crisis from the beginning, but that it had also nourished its own homemade intra-Euroland and intra-EU imbalances, the simultaneous implosion of which has further aggravated Europe's predicament. To keep its own house in order in the future, Euroland must shun the outdated "stability oriented" policy wisdom inherited from Germany's mercantilist past and Bundesbank mythology. Steps toward a fiscal union to back the euro are also warranted.

Suggested Citation

  • Jorg Bibow, 2009. "The Euro and Its Guardian of Stability--The Fiction and Reality of the 10th Anniversary Blast," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_583, Levy Economics Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:lev:wrkpap:wp_583
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. Jorg Bibow, 2004. "Assessing the ECB's Performance since the Global Slowdown: A Structural Policy Bias Coming Home to Roost?," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_409, Levy Economics Institute.
    9. anonymous, 2000. "Reviewing economic development needs," Banking and Community Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, issue 2, pages 6-7.
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    12. Joerg Bibow, 2006. "Inflation Persistence and Tax-Push Inflation in Germany and in the Euro Area: A Symptom of Macroeconomic Mismanagement?," IMK Studies 01-2006, IMK at the Hans Boeckler Foundation, Macroeconomic Policy Institute.
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    Cited by:

    1. Greg Hannsgen & Dimitri B. Papadimitriou, 2010. "The Central Bank 'Printing Press': Boon or Bane? Remedies for High Unemployment and Fears of Fiscal Crisis," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_640, Levy Economics Institute.
    2. Burak Saltoðlu & Devrim Yýlmaz, 2013. "Why is it so Difficult and Complex to Solve the Euro Problem?," Working Papers 2013/02, Bogazici University, Department of Economics.
    3. Jörg Bibow, 2010. "Alternative Strategien der Budgetkonsolidierung in Österreich nach der Rezession," IMK Studies 03-2010, IMK at the Hans Boeckler Foundation, Macroeconomic Policy Institute.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic and Monetary Union; Euro; European Central Bank; Global Imbalances; Global Crisis; Intra-area Imbalances; Competitiveness Positions; Policy Coordination; Tax-push Inflation; Financial Supervision; Mercantilism;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E30 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - General (includes Measurement and Data)
    • E42 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Monetary Sytsems; Standards; Regimes; Government and the Monetary System
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy
    • E58 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Central Banks and Their Policies
    • E61 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Policy Objectives; Policy Designs and Consistency; Policy Coordination
    • E63 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Comparative or Joint Analysis of Fiscal and Monetary Policy; Stabilization; Treasury Policy
    • E65 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Studies of Particular Policy Episodes
    • F36 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Financial Aspects of Economic Integration

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