The European Central Bank (ECB) is expected not to raise its benchmark interest rate either this year or next despite the mesmerising victory achieved by Emmanuel Macron at the French election held yesterday.

So far, opponents of euro membership have failed to make it into government in Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Austria and now France. But the EU can’t keep feeling its way from one election to the next. At some point an election might go the wrong way – and if that happens in a large country, the survival of the monetary union would be in jeopardy, Commerzbank reported.

To lay these existential risks to rest, the euro zone at long last needs a common commitment to solid government finances. The monetary union’s long-term survival depends on it. But new French President Macron won’t bring this any closer to reality. Macron is in favour of joint bond issuance, which would sharply reduce each government’s incentive to pursue prudent fiscal policies. It is thus right for German Chancellor Angela Merkel to reject joint debt issuance.

Also on Sunday, Merkel’s CDU party won its second state election this year, in Schleswig-Holstein, taking the further wind out of the sails of SPD challenger Martin Schulz, who would be more receptive to Macron’s European initiatives. All in all, the eurozone’s discord over economic policy is likely to fester. Despite Macron’s election as French president, the euro-zone will not calm down.

"Representatives of highly indebted countries in the ECB council will continue to push for a loose monetary policy. Furthermore, they can point to core inflation which shows no sign moving up towards the 2 percent target of the ECB," the report said.