Five concurrent crises push Europe into the realm of chaos

As Simon Tilford of the CER, recently argued, there is no way the eurozone will be able to shrug off the global downturn because its post-crisis recovery strategy rests on net exports. The eurozone is headed for a current account surplus of 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product this year. It is generally unwise for large economies such as the eurozone to depend on beggar-thy-neighbour-type policies. Now that the neighbour — the rest of the world — has fallen sick, there is no plan B.