Euro: Geopolitics Over Economics

Austrian economist Dr. Antony Mueller writes, (bold highlights mine)

“the fact that the euro is more a political than an economic project. Even more: the euro is an instrument to (re)gain geopolitical power for the Europeans. In other words: the euro is an imperial tool. In this respect bad economics is a given. The euro does have moral hazard effects...Yet the main point is that the euro project itself is hazardous game. Bad economics would no longer matter if the gamble will succeed. Current losses would be recouped a thousandfold just if oil were traded in euros or partly in euros. As of now it is already a fact that no far-reaching decision concerning the international monetary order can be taken against the will of the leaders of the eurozone. On a net basis, and even with the costs of the current sovereign debt crisis included, the euro has been beneficial for the whole region and beyond.”

Global foreign currency reserve from wikipedia

The time consistency dilemma of money that has been engineered for geopolitical incentives has limits. True, the euro has been gaining market share at the expense of the US dollar in terms of foreign currency reserves but the gains will always be relative.

Yet any political environment that thrives under bad economics will have interim benefits but eventually suffer from the recoil of the imbalances borne out of such bad policies. The euro or the yen or the yuan or the Philippine peso will not escape this basic economic laws at work. There is no free lunch.

To add, the perspective of politics over economics has been the path dependent policy approach employed by current crop of policymakers globally. In other words, interpreting actions by policymakers to address economic problems may not entirely be valid. Economics may just be a front or a cover for other ulterior political motivations that drives the decision making process of the political authorities as the Euro.

To quote economist Thomas Sowell,

Economists are often asked to predict what the economy is going to do. But economic predictions require predicting what politicians are going to do-- and nothing is more unpredictable.