FX.co ★ EU ready to tackle pandemic-driven crisis

Pessimistic experts predict that the EU economy might not recover from the coronavirus-driven crisis at all. Indeed, not a single country in the world has avoided the fallout from COVID-19. However, the EU economy had been already in dire straits before the coronavirus outbreak. The phenomenon of the robust economy in the euro area has always aroused envy among export-reliant economies. Remarkably, despite the lack of commodity resources, the block consisting of 27 small states has asserted itself as one of the linchpins of the global economy. The eurozone’s economy has been firmly outpacing all the resource-rich countries with vast territories. Interestingly, Europe has survived a series of crises throughout its history. So, optimists are certain that the EU will prove its resilience and cope with the devastating blow dealt by the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, analysts are trying to estimate the extent of the damage and reckon how much time the recovery will last. No one dares to make a forecast as the question is open when the virus will be actually contained. ECB President Christine Lagarde warns that the eurozone’s GDP could contract 15% this year. Such dismal prospects will certainly assure the ECB to introduce radical measures to shore up the crisis-stricken economy. The regulator has adopted an emergency stimulus package worth €540 billion which will come into force on June 1.