The shock of coronavirus could split Europe –unless nations share the burden | Moritz Schularick and Adam Tooze
European governments still seem destined to repeat the mistakes made in the financial crisis
During the 2008 financial crisis, many observers predicted the imminent collapse of the European currency project. They were wrong. The euro held together. Yet what the last crisis did not do, Covid-19 might yet bring about: the breakup of the eurozone.
The architecture of the currency union was ill prepared for the global banking crisis just over a decade ago. Yet in many ways, the situation is even worse today. Not only is the economic shock likely to be more severe, the coronavirus crisis is also, first and foremost, a fiscal rather than monetary challenge. As a result, it strikes at the central weakness of the eurozone.
Related: The last global crisis didn't change the world. But this one could | William Davies
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