Latin lessons for a eurozone recovery

Commentary feature. The writer was governor of Argentina’s central bank 2002-04. He suggests that Europe is slowly but surely falling into the same trap Latin American countries fell into, again and again, during the second half of the 20th century. The more the authorities try to avoid a currency crisis, banking failures and sovereign default, the more likely such doom becomes. One thing we have learnt from our region’s experience is that piecemeal, time-buying strategies always end up in a messier outcome – and almost always in the messiest possible one.

Time and cheap currency were pillars of Argentina’s recovery, says Alfonso Prat-Gay.