Italy will be Europe's canary in the coalmine for the post-Covid economy | Marchel Alexandrovich

All eyes will be on the southern European state to see if the ECB's measures will prevent a health emergency becoming an economic one

If there were any doubts as to how seriously European officials are treating the Covid-19 emergency, the Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte's reference to this being his country's "darkest hour" should help dispel them. Italy is the European country currently most affected by the virus, with the highest number of cases and fatalities. It might be the first in the region to be badly hit, but it almost certainly won't be the last.

Whether even more aggressive or creative action may be required in the coming weeks or months, no one knows. The initial reaction to the measures announced by the European Central Bank was mixed. But unlike the sovereign debt crisis - which first affected Greece and then Italy, Spain and Portugal - there is no political or economic divide between the needs of the core and the periphery of Europe in the face of the coronavirus challenge.

GDP declines for both Q1 and Q2 could prove to be twice as bad as anything seen during the 2008 financial crisis

Related: How do coronavirus containment measures vary across Europe?