Less of a Euro Headache, More of a Nightmare

Wall Street Journal
February 15, 2011

The sovereign-debt crisis is certainly a headache for the euro.

But replacing Jean-Claude Trichet at the European Central Bank could prove to be a nightmare.

Axel Weber’s decision to count himself out of the running for the ECB presidency has highlighted two important problems for the single currency.

First, any replacement will not be as hawkish as Weber. In an interview over the weekend, the arch-hawk made it clear that his views were not popular and he was stepping out of the race because he risked undermining the credibility of the ECB by being in the minority.

For the euro, that is bad enough.

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