Eurozone Afloat, but Still a Wreck

A cynic would be tempted to compare the eurozone to Ryou-Un Mara, the rusty Japanese ghost ship that floated across the Pacific after last year’s earthquake. Some wrecks surprise us by staying afloat for a long time, but that does not make them less of a wreck.

Right now, Spanish leaders are finding out that one successful bond auction does not mean the country is out of the woods. It is difficult to keep the trust of investors, especially if it requires constant support from the increasingly reluctant European Central Bank. As a result, at last week’s bond auction, the Spanish government was only able to sell $3.3 billion worth of debt maturing between 2015 and 2020, compared with the original ambition of selling up to $4.6 billion.