The COVID-19 health crisis came as a tremendous shock to the world, and to the EU more particularly, only a few years after the Eurozone crisis. The pandemic exacerbated the old structural differences in the economic models between the South and the North of Europe. However, this time, the response of the EU was of a completely different nature: an impressive array of fiscal and monetary policy instruments was mobilized to counteract the shock of the pandemic and to restore confidence.

Is there reason to be optimistic in these times of uncertainty? This volume explores possible answers to this question, bringing together several renowned European intellectuals and experts from the fields of economics, law, and public policy to offer their thoughts. The book will stimulate discussion on the quality of institutions and growth sustainability, and contains ideas on the future of Europe and the reorganization of European economic governance. It analyzes the basic fiscal and monetary policy tools used by the EU to tackle the Eurozone and COVID-19 pandemic crises. Several aspects of the EU Banking Union and possible structural reforms of the banking sector are also discussed, as is the role of Credit Rating Agencies as tools of economic prediction.