MarketWatch rounded up the 10 most important news events of the past week. We focused on market-related issues, but we’ve included other subjects of interest to readers.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi announced on Thursday the bank will begin a massive bond-purchasing program to help stimulate economic growth by lowering the value of the common currency, which would support exports.

The purchase of 60 billion euros a month will begin in March. But one of the underlying problems with the common currency is that the 19 member countries have varying economic policies, which lead to the type of imbalance that could cause Greece to make efforts to leave the euro if the Syriza party wins elections on Sunday. Sara Sjolin discussed five crucial things to know about the snap Greek elections.

If neither the Syriza party nor the conservative New Democracy wins a majority, there are several other contenders that could play kingmaker, depending on which one ranks third.

Even though Greece’s economy is one of the smallest in the eurozone, the elections are important because of the potential disruption to the common currency.

The rising dollar and higher value (and lower yield) of 10-year U.S. Treasury notes TMUBMUSD10Y, 0.701% reflect investors’ flight to safety amid all the uncertainty over the euro. Investors also crave German government bonds, and that country’s central bank offered an annual coupon of 0% on a $5 billion euro bond issue on Tuesday.

2. How to play the weaker euro

The euro EURUSD, -0.06% fell to its lowest level against the dollar in 11 years on Friday, which wasn’t very surprising in light of the ECB’s announcement.

Two weeks ago, we published a list of 15 European companies that would benefit from a weaker euro because they derive a large portion of sales in the United States.

Michael Gayed explained this week why the European Central Bank’s quantitative easing bodes well for U.S. stocks.

3. Dividend stocks shine

With long-term interest rates declining during 2014 and again so far this year, yield-hungry investors need to continue looking for investment alternatives. Here’s a list of 20 dividend stocks that have raised their payouts to shareholders for at least 25 consecutive years.

4. What about the dollar?

With the ECB’s massive bond purchases, along with political uncertainty and a slowing economy threatening the value of the euro, all signs point to continued strength for the U.S. dollar.

But Michael Brush believes investors need to start thinking about the dollar’s eventual decline. He calls the current situation a “crowded trade,” because it is difficult to find anyone “who isn’t bullish on the dollar.” He recommends betting the other way, and provided several ways to play the dollar’s eventual decline.

5. And what about the Fed?

The Federal Reserve ended its massive “QE3” bond purchases last year. There was plenty of speculation that the end of the bond buying would cause long-term interest rates in the U.S. to rise. The opposite happened, with the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds dropping by 87 basis points in 2014, and declining another 27 basis points through Thursday’s close, at 1.90%.

The Fed has kept the short-term federal funds rate in a range of zero to 0.25% since late 2008 and is expected to begin raising the rate, which is traditionally its key policy tool, in the middle of 2015.

Most banks are eager to see the federal funds rate rise, as it will lead to an expansion of net interest margins.

Steve Goldstein discussed that the lowering of interest rates by central banks outside the United States is making it seem “almost ludicrous” for the Fed to raise rates by the middle of this year.

But Jon Hilsenrath thinks the Fed is still “on track” to raise rates this year.

5. China’s markets rumble

China’s National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday that the nation’s economy grew 7.4% during 2014, which was the slowest growth rate in 24 years.

Craig Stephen discussed the pressure on China’s currency, and the ECB’s move helped cause the yuan USDCNY, to slide against the dollar on Thursday and Friday.

Laura He summed up analysts’ sentiment: China’s economy looks weak, but China’s stocks look better.

6. Oil is a mixed bag

Crude oil CLH25, for March delivery was trading just above $46 a barrel Friday, down 1% from a week earlier, after the Energy Information Administration said U.S. inventories had hit their highest levels in 80 years.

The drop in oil prices is a mixed bag for the United States. Yes, I can fill my tank for less than $2 a gallon, but thousands of workers will lose their jobs this year, as domestic companies in the hydraulic business cut their production-expansion plans.

Wallace Witkowski said that if oil were to drop below $30 a barrel, we would looking at a global recession.

According to J.J. Zhang, you can still cash in on the collapse in crude oil, with various ETF investments.

William Watts highlighted a big hedge-fund winner from oil’s decline.

7. Financial stocks’ ups and downs

Banks are one of the weakest sectors of the S&P 500 Index SPX, -1.11% this year, down 6% through Thursday. Fourth-quarter earnings results for the largest banks have been generally disappointing, as net interest margins continue to be squeezed and the biggest players continue to work to cut elevated expenses as loan quality continues to improve.

Here’s a summary of earnings estimates, stock valuations and analyst opinion for the “big four” U.S. banks, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM, -0.21% , Bank of America Corp. BAC, -0.55% , Citigroup Inc. C, -1.47% and Wells Fargo & Co. WFC, +0.08% .

This week’s biggest loser among large banks was Discover Financial Services DFS, -0.85% , with the stock dropping 6% on Thursday after the company reported a decline in fourth-quarter earnings, mainly resulting from non-recurring expenses, but also reflecting a boost to loan-loss reserves. The company’s return on equity for the fourth quarter was 14%, although it would have been close to 20% if the one-time items were excluded.

The timing of Discover’s bad quarter was unfortunate, following the company’s inclusion in Jeff Reeves’ three financial stocks that will soon be trading at higher prices on Wednesday, and after I said late last year that Discover was your best bank-stock bet for 2015.

But the fact remains that Discover’s stock trades much more cheaply on a forward price-to-earnings basis than any other bank with consistent returns on equity anywhere near as high. Among the largest 30 U.S. banks, Discover’s stock has returned 351% over the past five years. No other big bank even comes close. Huntington Bancshares Inc. HBAN, -1.02% is in second place, with a five-year return of 137%.

Here’s my case for why the best financial stock just got a lot more attractive.

8. Housing market

With the national average interest rate of just 2.94% for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage loan and 3.84% for a 30-year fixed, banks are expecting a surge of loan applications and home-buying this year. If you are shopping for a home, be sure to make a comparison between a 15-year and a 30-year loan. If you can afford the monthly payment on the 15-year loan, you will build equity much faster, while saving tens of thousands in interest payments over the life of the loan. Plus, you get out 15 years faster. And if you don’t plan to stay in the home for that long, you will at least have a much easier time making a move, because of the higher equity you will have built up.

You might even consider buying “less house” or holding on to an older car to afford the 15-year loan. It pays to insist on a full comparison of the two loan types, including total interest paid over the life of the loan.

According to Jeff Reeves, “all the data we are getting continues to show strength both in demand and in prices” for homes in the United States. Here are his 10 reasons housing will remain buoyant in 2015.

9. Renting vs. buying

Here’s an age-old question: Should you rent a home or buy one? It depends. Isn’t that a helpful answer?

Catey Hill caused quite a stir, with the $700,000-plus mistake nearly 6 in 10 millennials may make, in which she discussed the advantages of buying over renting. This led to emotional arguments among readers, who left over 300 comments.

10. Travel

MarketWatch travel articles usually accentuate the positive by identifying places you should consider visiting and offer tips on how to get there without breaking your wallet.

This week’s focus turned negative, with Catey Hill discussing the odds your cruise vacation might go horribly wrong.