Can Italy be saved?

AS the economist Mario Monti's new government takes office in Italy, much is at stake for the country, for Europe and for the global economy.

If reforms falter, public finances collapse and anaemic growth persists, Italy's commitment to the euro will diminish as the perceived costs of membership come to outweigh the benefits. And Italy's defection from the common currency unlike that of smaller countries, like Greece would threaten the eurozone to the core.