Germany does not have a government, though the election was more than three months ago. Spain, Portugal, and Ireland have minority government. Austria is the first government since the financial crisis to include the populist right. The EU is trying to press Visegrad group of central European countries to conform to the values of Western European members. And yet it is Italian politics and the election on March 4 that is drawing attention. Investors do not seem to care much about political developments provided they are local and do not pose systemic risk. Italy may pose such risk, the argument goes, because the ... (full story)