Special report: A special report on the euro area. Holding together

Survey contains a series of features. The lead overview articles says the euro area, sorely tested by the financial crisis, has survived intact and is likely to expand further.

The financial crisis is proving by far the biggest test to date for the euro zone. This special report will look at its effects on the euro area and consider whether such a disparate group of countries can continue to share the same monetary policy. It will ask whether the crisis will spur economic reform and whether it will attract more members to the club or, conversely, whether some of them might be thinking about leaving. Lastly, it will examine the idea that in the longer term a multinational currency area will require greater political union to function properly.