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Last week the @ECB extended its current asset purchase program, now totalling €1.8 tn. Several EU states can borrow at negative interest rates.

10 years ago, the eurozone almost collapsed, a result of a misconstructed currency that was meant to fail from the outset.

A thread👇


1/Before the introduction of the euro, fluctuating exchange rates were seen as threat for economic integration & embarrassment for those who were inflating their currencies faster than others.

The European Monetary System, set up in 1979, was an attempt to stabilise fx rates.

2/The EMS was doomed to fail as members applied different monetary policies while trying to keep their fx rates in a pre-defined corridor.

The German Bundesbank refused to devalue the Mark when other centr. banks inflated their currencies - strengthening the Mark by comparison.


3/Traditionally, Southern EU countries have been more prone to inflation & high debt levels due to a large public sector, strong labour unions & generous pension systems.

Northern countries like Germany & the Netherlands typically had more prudent monetary & fiscal policies.

4/To get rid of the stubbornly conservative Bundesbank & monetise public deficits more easily, Southern countries spearheaded by France pushed for a single currency and used Germany’s desire for reunification in 1989 to make it give up the D-Mark.