The tensions between the eurozone's north and south, and the complex and politically costly transfers of money required to dampen the euro crisis, have led many people to think the unthinkable: saving Europe's common currency may require that some countries abandon it.
Germany's budget savings policy risks destroying the European project and a collapse of the Euro cannot be ruled out, billionaire investor George Soros said in a newspaper interview.
Disagreements over how quickly to reduce inflated budget deficits and restore balance to the global economy risk will be one of the main issues to be addressed at the high-level Group of 20 talks this week in South Korea.
World stock markets plunge Friday and the Euro hit an 18-month low against the dollar, on growing fears that the austerity packages unveiled across Europe could tip the continent back into recession and stifle global economic recovery.
Former Federal Reserve chairman and advisor of the Obama administration is concerned that the Euro area may break up after the Greek fiscal crisis that sparked an unprecedented bailout by the region’s members.
Gibraltar Chief Minister Peter Caruana gave the warmest welcome the Rock could give to a new Foreign Secretary as he described William Hague, former Tory leader, as a “safe pair of hands” from Gibraltar's perspective.
Portugal has become the latest country to introduce austerity measures, after both Greece and Spain took similar steps to stabilize public finances in the face of massive debt.
European countries saddled with debt should focus on cutting deficits in the wake of policy makers' unprecedented efforts to contain the region's sovereign-debt crisis, said John Lipsky from the International Monetary Fund.
European leaders unveiled an unprecedented loan package worth almost one trillion US dollars and a program of bond purchases in an attempt to bolster the Euro that has become highly vulnerable because of the Greek sovereign-debt crisis.
Global stock markets closed sharply Friday amid investor fears that Greece's debt crisis could halt the global economic recovery.