The Euro

Report

$1,116,178,337,658.59 is a large sum of money. That is equivalent to 751 billion euros; the number of euros in circulation as of November 2008. It is the currency with the highest combined value of cash in circulation in the world. As such, the euro has surpassed the US Dollar in that respect.

The euro was introduced as a way to strengthen European financial stability. It was a move to create a more efficient currency for the members of the European Union. Some of the countries have gotten better, whereas some other countries may have gotten worse. Currently sixteen countries have adopted the euro as their currency.

The sixteen EU countries that adopted the euro are: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. That’s 16 out of the 27 EU member states. The EU member states that didn’t adopt the euro are: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Three of the major EU member states still use their own national currency; they are Great Britain, Denmark, and Sweden. There are more countries that use the euro as their currency, but they aren’t in a legal arrangement with the EU. Because of that, they are not allowed to manufacture the euro. 

There are other countries not in the EU that use the euro as their currency. Some of these also have permission to mint small amounts of the euro; they are Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican City. Some of the EU member states’ territories also use the euro as their currency; a couple of them are French Guyana and Martinique.

The US Dollar is a reserve currency, and is the most traded currency. The euro is the second largest reserve currency, and the second most traded currency. The euro has surpassed the US Dollar in value.  1 Euro = 1.4863 US Dollars. It may become the first international reserve currency. The euro may very well take over as the dominating currency.

The euro had a humble start, helping to increase trade and promote the development of the economy of the Eurozone.  It has become a rival to the US Dollar and has created a bilateral currency market. Most everyone trades with one of the two currencies. The euro may very well take over as the international trading currency.