eunion1-4, Exercise 3: The euro

Model answer:

Key dates: Maastricht (signed 1992, in force 1993) set the timetable; the European Central Bank began work in 1998; on 1 January 1999 eleven countries adopted the euro for accounting and electronic payments; on 1 January 2002 euro notes and coins replaced national ones in twelve countries.

The 1992 crisis (Black Wednesday), when speculators forced the pound and the lira out of the exchange-rate mechanism, was an argument for a single currency, because with no national currencies there would be nothing to speculate against. It was also an argument against, because it showed that tying economies together can be dangerous.

(Check the exact list of founding countries and the number of countries in 2002.)