Category Archives: Euro

Paul Krugman: Rationality and the Euro

Posted on July 6, 2013 by MG-PT

  Simon Wren-Lewis, for once, has a happy story to tell. He looks back at Britain’s fateful decision, ten years ago, not to join the euro, and argues that the decision was made on the basis of — gasp! — … Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman: German Wages and Portuguese Competitiveness (A Bit Wonkish)

Posted on May 20, 2013 by MG-PT

  There’s a three-cornered debate among Ryan Avent, Tyler Cowen, and Karl Smith over the extent to which a more expansionary ECB policy would help the European periphery. I very much agree with Avent and Smith that Cowen, who worries … Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman: Europe in Brief

Posted on April 15, 2013 by MG-PT

  Tim Duy asks, when can we all admit that the euro is a failure? The answer, of course, is never. Too much history, too many declarations, too much ego is invested in the single currency for those involved ever … Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman: The ECB, OMT, and Moral Hazard

Posted on April 8, 2013 by MG-PT

  Back in 2011 and again in the summer of 2012, a number of economists pleaded with the European Central Bank to intervene in sovereign bond markets, buying troubled nations’ debt to stop the “doom loop” of plunging bond prices … Continue reading →

Posted in Euro, Europe, NYT, Paul Krugman | 2 Comments

Paul Krugman: France Has Its Own Currency Again

Posted on April 8, 2013 by MG-PT

  Joe Weisenthal draws our attention to a development that may surprise many people: French borrowing costs are plunging. (Don’t tell George Osborne — he thinks that low British rates are a unique personal achievement). Here’s the chart for French … Continue reading →

Posted in Euro, NYT, Paul Krugman | 1 Comment

Paul Krugman: One Size Fits None

Posted on April 2, 2013 by MG-PT

  In today’s Business Insider, Joe Weisenthal reports on Europe’s truly dismal PMIs (survey-based indexes that act as early-warning indicators for official economic data). There’s no doubt at all that the continent is falling deeper into recession, even in the … Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman: What’s the Greek for Corralito?

Posted on March 28, 2013 by MG-PT

  It’s now three years since I suggested a possible route to Greek exit from the euro: a banking crisis, followed by sharp limits on bank withdrawals similar to Argentina’s 2001 corralito, and then — with the panic argument against … Continue reading →

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Paul Krugman: Cyprus, Seriously

Posted on March 26, 2013 by MG-PT

  A correspondent whom I respect has (gently) challenged me to say plainly what I think Cyprus should do — leaving aside all questions about political realism. And he’s right: while I think it’s OK to spend most of my … Continue reading →

Posted in Cyprus, Euro, EZ, Paul Krugman | 1 Comment

Paul Krugman: The Яussians Are Coming! The Яussians Are Coming!

Posted on March 19, 2013 by MG-PT

  How big a deal is the Russian factor in Cyprus’s crisis? Pretty big, it seems. Over at FT Alphaville, Izabella Kaminska reports on estimates of 19 billion euros in Russian nationals’ deposits in Cyprus banks, which is more than … Continue reading →

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Island Nightmares – NYTimes.com

Posted on March 18, 2013 by MG-PT

  What is it about islands around Europe’s periphery? Is there some peculiar psychological thing about proximity plus the illusion of isolation that makes them turn themselves into havens for runaway banks? Inquiring minds want to know. Anyway, the Cyprus … Continue reading →

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