European Union

Four reasons why the euro will survive

Despite the many dire predictions about the collapse of the euro zone's common currency, there are good reasons to believe it will survive.

FORTUNE – The state of the euro looks bleaker by the day. Amid a deepening banking crisis in Spain and ahead of a pivotal June 17 Greek election that could make or break the nation's ties with the euro zone, the idea of a euro break up has MORE

Europe's best fix: A "New E.U."

It's time to press the reset button in Europe -- if members of the EU want a common currency, they should give up their national identities in favor of a European one.

By Cyrus Sanati

FORTUNE -- There is growing fear that the European debt crisis may have given the euro an incurable disease that could not only bring down the common currency, but also lead to the total collapse of MORE

It's time for Europe to choose inflation over austerity

If the EU's leading nations aren't willing to forgive the debt of their troubled bretheren, then maybe they need to start printing more euros.

By John Cassidy, contributor

FORTUNE – From the U.S., the European debt crisis can seem like a black comedy populated by regional stereotypes: iron-fisted Anglo-Saxons, feckless Mediterraneans, and haughty Brussels bureaucrats. Closer to the action, it isn't funny at all. In the words of Mervyn King, governor MORE

How to save the euro

The new leaders in France and Greece should reassure the markets that they're willing to work within the existing framework of agreements and that they're committed to the euro.

By Cyrus Sanati

FORTUNE -- The elections in France and Greece over the weekend have created a crisis of confidence that could eventually drown the euro and push the continent into a deeper recession. Talk of tearing up past agreements and a MORE

Why Wall Street fears a Socialist French leader

Financial executives are worried about tougher regulations should Socialist leader Francois Hollande win the French presidential election. They should be.

By Cyrus Sanati

FORTUNE -- France's presidential election has Wall Street and the global markets worried – and for good reason. The election of Socialist party leader Francois Hollande to France's top job this coming Sunday would introduce an air of instability into the global economy at a time when it MORE

A third bailout for Greece seems inevitable

The debt restructuring last week was deemed a success, but if Greece continues in its current state with no outside economic stimulus, it will burn through that 130 billion euros in no time.

By Cyrus Sanati, contributor

FORTUNE -- French President Nicholas Sarkozy declared Friday that the long-running Greek debt "problem" had finally been "solved," following the successful implementation of a massive debt restructuring in the country. But while the restructuring was more successful than many MORE

5 ways to transform Greece's economy now

Greece's problems aren't all about debt. They're about competitiveness, and changing the arcane rules in areas from the cruise industry to pharmaceuticals would help it reboot its economy.

FORTUNE -- The searing images from Athens -- the streets choked with rioters, stately buildings and Starbucks' ablaze -- are masking a drive to liberate markets that's unlike anything any nation has attempted to do in decades. The platform is being pushed hard MORE

The lure to leave the euro may prove irresistible

Greece, Italy, and the other embattled eurozone nations may need to start looking out for themselves and consider leaving the euro. Better to be Argentina than Latvia.

FORTUNE -- The eurozone crisis is far from the first time that nations in steep decline, saddled with a vastly overvalued currency, have been forced to choose a path to recovery.

It's extremely instructive to study the cases of two countries that in the past MORE

How low will the euro go?

The currency remained resilient through most of Europe's turmoil last year, but investors are finally beginning to see the euro for what it is: Weak.

FORTUNE -- Investors have been unnerved for more than a year now about the future of the embattled euro zone. Bond yields for the zone's troubled peripheral countries soared, as investors lost faith that Greece and others would be able to pay back its huge debts. And MORE

London's great debate: Can it survive as a financial hub?

Love it or hate it, Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to isolate Britain from the European Union and protect its bankers has brought London back into the international spotlight.

By Katherine Ryder, contributor

FORTUNE -- In London, bankers are everywhere -- at least for now.

They are in the "The City," the English answer to Wall Street. Banks and asset managers line narrow streets surrounding St. Paul's Cathedral, with upscale fast-food lunch places MORE