As for the Euro, I can’t believe it has lasted this long. To be a sovereign nation and yet have someone outside tell you what your monetary policy is seems to be very tenuous at best. I still think that it will be a bone of contention before long and the UK was wise to bow out and not participate. However, it makes it easier for many to do business, mostly them with each other.

 Foreign exchange is a great topic.  The most important aspect is to understand how companies use the market to hedge their exposure.  They do this in multiple ways including swaps, futures, and options.  Almost every international company has a line in their annual report that says they use the markets to hedge forex but not to speculate. 

Europe has far less flexibility in the workforce and a much higher % depending on a pension. It’s really the worker flexibility that has contributed to the US staying on top economically. We can adjust to what works and quickly get rid of what doesn’t without hurting the employees unduly. Therefore we can take more risk and more chances in our business startups.

As for reform, I would ask if the U.S. is better off with a less competitive E.U. Obviously, the real answer is no as the more efficient they are the more efficient the entire global economy will be, but sometime I just kinda want to root for the home team. 😉