This paper reviews the performance of the euro area since the euro's launch 20 years ago. It argues that the euro … crisis has exposed existential flaws in the euro regime. Intra-area divergences and the corresponding buildup of imbalances … unemployment continue to plague euro crisis countries. Its huge current account surplus highlights that the euro currency union …

who see the euro as the advent of a newly open, large, and efficient regime which will lead to improvements in European … and in particular in German competitiveness; those who see the euro as a weakening of the German commitment to price …