Celebrating 10 years of the euro?

by Zlender | May 12, 2008 at 07:17 am | 140 views | add comment

When the euro was launched there were plenty of people who thought it would crash and burn.

Ten years on, its role as a global currency is secure, even if it hasn't achieved everything its founders hoped.

Wednesday is the 10th anniversary of the agreement that launched the single currency.

However, residents of the first 12 EU states that adopted the euro didn't begin using euro banknotes and coins until 1 January, 2002.

Things didn't start out so well.

The euro spent its early life hitting record lows against the dollar - but now it is the greenback that's falling.

Tourists and exporters in the eurozone have to cope with the euro at a record high. Many in Europe are now bracing themselves for the effects of the slowdown in America.

I love the fact I mostly only need one currency when travelling across Europe. Though at home prices skyrocketed after we got euro, it's probably not enitrely euros fault but it leaves bad taste nevertheless.