Consensus Out of the Euro Zone Crisis

Kai Pfaffenbach/REUTERS

President of the German Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht ) Andreas Vosskuhle removes his hat after announcing the ruling on the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the fiscal pact at the court in Karlsruhe September 12, 2012. Germany's Constitutional Court gave a green light on Wednesday for the country to ratify the euro zone's new rescue fund and budget pact but gave the German parliament veto powers over any future increases in the size of the fund. The eagerly anticipated verdict by the court in Karlsruhe, southern Germany, boosted global stocks and the euro currency as investors breathed a sigh of relief that the euro zone's rescue fund could take effect after months of delay.

Some things, at last, seem to be going right for the euro. A semblance of calm has returned to financial markets following the European Central Bank's (ECB) decision to buy up the sovereign debt of troubled euro economies. And on Sept. 12, Germany's highest court ruled (with some caveats) that the new $900 billion bailout fund doesn't breach the German constitution.

Big deal, you might say. There's still enough bad news out there — Greece, anyone? — to quicken the pulse of financial-market traders. And neither decision addresses the pressing challenges facing Europe today: the recession...

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