In the worst-case outlook, the economy begins to implode.
The best-case outlook is that the euro zone will, in effect, grow its way out of this crisis.
Its staff forecast a best-case outlook of zero growth in December and now says the economy could contract from 2.2 to 3.2percentthis yearar.
Under a best-case outlook, according to the authors, the nation's net federal debt will rise to 155 percent of gross domestic product in 2035, more than double the current levels.
The lending entity would, in the best-case outlook, get large chunks of increased revenues beyond the $1.1 billion a year earmarked for education, plus roughly 6percentt interest.
"What," asked my interlocutor, "is the worst-case outlook for the world economy?" It wasn't until the next day that I came up with the right answer: America could turn Irish.
In a worst-case outlook, Enron could become the 2001 version of Long-Term Capital Management, the huge hedge fund whose collapse roiled financial markets during the fall of 1998.
In fact, things are so bad that Paul Krugman, the Nobel economic prize winner, claims the situation in Ireland could be a model of the worst-case outlook for the world economy, adding that Ireland "appears to be really, truly without options".
In the worst-case outlooks, about which industry experts are deeply divided, the United States could find itself beholden to a small number of countries to keep its lights on, a prospect with profound implications for American foreign policy.
