Ah, the sweet smell of economic recovery. Stock markets around the globe are resurgent, corporate spending looks set to rise, and optimists are even talking about a return to the golden years of noninflationary growth in the mid-1990s. But how strong is this upturn, really--and is it sustainable?
That may depend on where you stand. When TIME's Board of Economists met during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, late last month, the perspectives varied according to geography. "The U.S. economy is on steroids," said a worried Pascal Blanque, chief economist at the French bank Credit Agricole. Blanque fears an...