Show Entire Article
(It's spring training here in the States, so I hope my friends on the continent will forgive the baseball metaphor.)
In baseball parlance, we would say that what Europe needs today is better bat speed.
Over the past year, European economic officials have swung late at a series of pitches. And this past week Europe stood at the plate, and rather than swing, they've decided to keep their bats on their shoulders.
Last year, the ECB kept policy rates for the eurozone stubbornly high, declining to coordinate action with the Fed's shift to monetary stimulus. The ECB, unable to anticipate the global slowdown, had actually RAISED rates in July of last year. With energy prices skyrocketing in 2008, the ECB got caught looking for the curveball.
On the next pitch, European officials were fooled again — this time by the knuckle ball of a financial crisis. Believing their highly-regulated banks to be safe from the afflictions of U.S. banks, European officials were slow to recognize the vulnerability of their banking systems and let the floater go by for another strike.
Having whiffed on both monetary policy and in addressing their banking system, European economic officials are looking weak-kneed in the batter's box.
Read More on CNBC.com:
Page 1 of 3 | Next PageShow Entire Article
More Top Stories