Why we got here and where we are headed Ashoka Mody October 27, 20 Based on EuroTragedy: A Drama in Nine Acts, New York: Oxford University Press, e 20
Thesis: monetary union would lead Europe into political union. Early warnings: monetary union would increase political tensions and divisions rather than foster political unity. Nicholas Kaldor, March 1971: o Single currency would amplify economic divergence, and o A house divided against itself cannot stand. Robert Marjolin, crucial catalyst of Treaty of Rome, in the 1970s: o Political efforts to counteract economic divergence would be impeded by the sovereignty barrier: o European leaders obviously not ready to give up core sovereign functions; o Change required was too profound.
Kaldor s ghost stalks: the euro area s great divergence. Per capita incomes (In thousands of US dollars, corrected for purchasing power parity) 50 48 Germany 46 44 42 France 40 38 36 Italy 34 2003 05 07 09 11 13 15
Predictably, German exporters shift their sights away from the euro area. (Percent of total German exports to the various countries) 12 10 France Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland 8 United States 6 Italy 4 China 2 0 1999 2007 20 Source: IMF Data, http://data.imf.org/regular.aspx?key=61013712. Undercuts the core claim that the euro promotes economic growth.
Number of college-educated migrants older than 25 (thousands) Young college-educated Italians leave Italy in growing numbers. 30 25 20 15 10 5 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 Share of 25 to 34 years-olds among migrants with college degrees Share 25-34 of 25 to 34 year-olds among migrants with college degrees (right) Number of college graduates leaving Italy (left) Number of college graduates returning to Italy (left) 0 2002 04 06 08 10 12 14 0 Source: Italian National Institute of Statistics. Italy's low growth trap: poor opportunities, the educated leave, R&D remains weak, and opportunities remain poor.
Per Kaldor s political forecast: economic wounds left political scars. (Decrease in percentage of respondents who trust the European Union, 20 relative to 2001) 0 Italy France Germany -5-10 -15-20 -25-30 -35-40 Source: Standard Eurobarometer survey, available at http://zacat.gesis.org. Note: Respondents answered the following question: I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain institutions. For each of the following institutions, please tell me if you (Tend to trust it; Tend not to trust it): The European Union. The chart presents the change in share of people who said they trusted the EU. For each year, 2001 and 20, responses for the two available quarters are averaged.
Looking ahead: the ECB has reached its political limits: ECB delay in bond purchases delivered the lowflation wound. (Three-month moving average of core annual inflation rates, percent) 2 1.8 United States 1.6 1.4 1.2 Euro Area 1 0.8 0.6 2012 Dec 12 13 Dec 13 14 Dec 14 15 Dec 15 Dec 17 Dec 17 Source: Eurostat: HICP All Items Excluding Energy and Food ; St. Louis Fed, FRED: Personal Consumption Expenditures Excluding Food and Energy (Chain-Type Price Index).
The ECB keeps forecasting a rise in inflation: Inflation remains stubbornly low. 1.8 1.6 2013 forecast 2014 forecast 2015 forecast 20 forecast 2017 forecast 1.4 1.2 20 forecast 1.0 0.8 0.6 Solid line is the actual euro-area core inflation 2012 13 14 15 17 19 20 Sources: ECB s Macroeconomic Projections made in March of the year, https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/projections/html/index.en.html. Note: 20 core inflation is the average of months January to September 20.
World trade rather than ECB s bond purchases moves eurozone growth. (Annual growth rates, percent; three-quarter moving averages) 7 6 5 4 3 World trade Germany industrial production France industrial production Italy industrial production ECB bond purchases in flow from March 2015, but unable to raise economic 2 1 0-1 Aug 2015 Nov 15 Feb May Aug Nov Feb 17 May 17 Aug 17 Nov 17 Feb May Aug Source: For world trade growth data World Trade Monitor, https://www.cpb.nl/en/data; for the industrial production of Germany, France and Italy Eurostat, code [sts_inpr_m]. Note: The three-month average of growth over the same three months in the previous year.
Italy s financial problems: The government-bank doom loop, always latent, has remerged. 4.0 1.2 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 Jan 20 Government bond yield (left, percent) Feb Mar Apr May Financial sector performance (right, index) Jul Aug Sep Oct 1.1 1.0 0.9 0.8 Sources: FTSE Italia All-Share Financial Index: Global Financial Data, ticker IT8300 Index; FTSE Italia All-Share Index: Global Financial Data, ticker FTSEMIB Index; Italy ten-year bond yield: Datastream International, code S310DT. Notes: The graph presents the relative performance of financial stocks and the Italian 10-year bond yield from 2 January 2015 to September 2012. The relative performance of financial stocks for Italy is the ratio between the FTSE Italia All-Share Financial Index and FTSE Italia All-Share Index.
The search for a savior.
Marjolin s ghost stalks: Sovereignty barrier is stronger than ever.