Currency union talks resume after a five-year freeze
Optimism is measured in basis points, not handshakes.
The decision-makers involved insist nothing is settled, which is exactly what decision-makers say when something is starting to settle.
Outside the room, the response has been faster, messier, and considerably more interesting.
The institutional response has been measured, which in this context is a polite way of saying slow.
Skeptics point to the long history of premature declarations. Their caution is earned, and worth keeping close at hand.
Observers describe a mood of cautious optimism, the kind that travels in private conversations long before it appears in any press release.
What makes this moment unusual is not the size of the move but its shape. The curve bends in a way that resists easy analogies.
