In this article assumptions and forecasts of contradictory manifestos of economists Eurosceptics versus Euro-optimists are confronted with reality. Some of the major findings are: (1) The convergence criteria were not applied exactly and strictly as politicians have postulated in advance but...

A series of crisis and emergency interest rate cuts has brought global interest rates towards zero and government debt to historical records. The paper discusses the exit options from unconventional monetary policies and unsustainable government debt. First, the paper sheds light on the...