Comment: The ugly underbelly of the European experiment

There’s a distinct lack of leadership over Europe, and markets are impatient. Amongst the politicians, the rumours, and the bureaucratic nonsense, peripheral bond yields are sky-rocketing, and equity markets are bracing themselves for a looming banking crisis and the potential for some serious earnings’ downgrades. The mood is cautious; there’s a sense of foreboding, but in and amongst the noise and G20 pen-pushing, a dangerous assumption is developing that someone, somewhere is going to do the right thing and magic it all into shape. It is an assumption, dare I say it, based on the v...