Debate about the euro as a global currency: Rüp and Hüther call for more independence for the EU

In this episode of Economic Challenges, Handelsblatt chief economist Bert Rürup and Michael Hüther, director of the German Economic Institute, discuss whether the European Union should specifically expand the euro into a global currency.

The starting point is the recent meeting between Trump and Xi in Washington, which, from the perspective of both guests, marks a tectonic shift in the geopolitical structure: the USA is increasingly turning away from Europe, while Washington and Beijing, despite all rivalry, are moving closer in a “constructive relationship of strategic stability”.

Rürup demands that Europe must “grow up” in terms of monetary policy and should no longer rely on solidarity with the USA. A strong euro is the third weight against the rapprochement between two major powers.

Hüther points to historical parallels - from the Nixon shock to the introduction of the euro by Kohl and Mitterrand - and calls for bans on thinking in the German debate about Eurobonds, a common issuing agency and an expanded ECB mandate to be abandoned. “In any case, we have to think through the chances, even if there are a few unpleasant parts of the food involved,” he says.