As the European single currency swung between $1.30 and $1.20 last month, Euromoney toured banks whose currency strategists were publishing estimates of it going to $1.15 or lower. In private conversation, it’s soon obvious that many indeed expect the European currency to head for parity with the dollar or even fall through it, especially if the present single-currency bloc holds together, and any system of fiscal transfers between states – which Angela Merkel has so far denounced as an "irresponsible" model – does emerge.
With the US, the UK and the eurozone governments all in the same boat, struggling with high debts, fragile recovery and low growth, the threat of competitive devaluations hangs heavy in...
