Even before the Covid pandemic has subsided, Europe is now facing another major shock in the form of the Ukraine war. It is threatening economic growth and jobs, and the accompanying soaring inflation is hitting low-income households especially hard. In all this, it is unclear how long the war will last and how drastic the restrictions on energy supply will be.
Peter Bofinger is Professor for Monetary and International Economics at Würzburg University and a former member of the German Council of Economic Experts.
The European Central Bank (ECB) is due to end its Quantitative Easing (QE) programme at the end of the year.