LONDON -- The long shadow of recession is now stretching from America over Europe, bringing disappointment and unease to Europe's policymakers and business communities.
The disappointment is particularly sharp because the earlier hope was that Europe would somehow be insulated against the American economic downturn, and, in particular, that the arrival of the euro would give Europe a huge boost and accelerate the catching-up process with the giant U.S. superpower.
But none of this has happened. The German economy, supposedly Europe's main motor, has slowed to a halt. The French economy is faltering. In Britain manufacturing production is shrinking fast. Stock markets are going nowhere and the rush of industrial mergers across borders, which certainly took place at the birth of the euro, has slowed to a trickle.