The crisis started in the US, but Europe is where it might turn into catastrophe.

A senior policymaker told me last week that the present situation reminded him of the 1992 crisis of Europe’s exchange rate mechanism, when one country after another became subject to speculative attacks – leading to the expulsion of the UK and Italy from the system. In a monetary union, you can no longer bet on exchange rates. But thanks to credit default swaps, you can place convenient bets on the break-up of the eurozone. Last week, speculators bet on an Irish default, and these bets make it more expensive for Ireland to refinance its debt, thus threatening to turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.