If I Had To Sum

The Lower Interest Rates Fueled Housing And Consumption Booms In Countries Such As Spain And Ireland. At The Same Time, Germany, Struggling With The Burdens Of Reunification, Tightened Its Belt And Became More Competitive. All This Led To A Wide Divergence In Economic Performance. Europe Became Divided Into Creditor And Debtor Countries.

Financial Markets ... Resent Any Kind Of Government Interference But They Hold A Belief Deep Down That If Conditions Get Really Rough The Authorities Will Step In.

However, You Have To Recognize That Regulations Will Never Be Completely Successful And They Will Always Be Full Of Holes. You Must Constantly Be Ready To Fill New Holes. Actually Regulation Should Be Kept To A Minimum, But There Has To Be Some Cooperation Between Market Participants And Authorities - As Was The Case In The Early Postwar Years. The Bank Of England Was A Very Successful Regulator By Cooperating With Market Participants. This Cooperative Spirit Was Broken By The Market Fundamentalists.

China Could Easily Emerge As The Great Winner If The Chinese Leaders Handle The Situation Well. On The Other Hand, They Could Also Turn Out To Be The Biggest Losers If They Handle It Poorly. If The Management Turns Out Be Wrong, This Could Lead To A Political Crisis In China.

As A Society We Can't Live Without Moral Considerations. We Do Have To Protect The Public Good. And Markets Are Not Designed To Do That, So We Need A Political Process.