Eurozone - Wikipedia. European Union. This article is part of a series on thepolitics and governmentof the European Union.

Latest breaking news, including politics, crime and celebrity. Find stories, updates and expert opinion. The euro came into existence on 1 January 1999, although it had been a goal of the European Union (EU) and its predecessors since the 1960s. After tough negotiations. Reputation Hack Mass Effect 3 there.

The eurozone ( pronunciation (help. The monetary authority of the eurozone is the Eurosystem. The other nine members of the European Union continue to use their own national currencies, although most of them are obliged to adopt the euro in future. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. Other EU states (except for Denmark and the United Kingdom) are obliged to join once they meet the criteria to do so. The principal task of the ECB is to keep inflation under control. Though there is no common representation, governance or fiscal policy for the currency union, some co- operation does take place through the Eurogroup, which makes political decisions regarding the eurozone and the euro.

Archives and past articles from the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and Philly.com. France (French: France), officially the French Republic (French: République française), is a country in Western Europe. Its capital city is Paris.

Even more » Account Options. Sign in; Search settings. Download the free trial version below to get started. Double-click the downloaded file to install the software.

The Eurogroup is composed of the finance ministers of eurozone states, but in emergencies, national leaders also form the Eurogroup. Since the financial crisis of 2. The eurozone has also enacted some limited fiscal integration, for example in peer review of each other's national budgets. The issue is political and in a state of flux in terms of what further provisions will be agreed for eurozone change. Member states. Greece qualified in 2.

January 2. 00. 1 before physical notes and coins were introduced on 1 January 2. Between 2. 00. 7 and 2. State. Adopted. Population,2.

Latvia and Lithuania were not in the eurozone in 2. Historical eurozone enlargements and exchange- rate regimes for EU members. The euro replaced the ECU 1: 1 at the exchange rate markets, on 1 January 1. During 1. 97. 9- 1. D- Mark functioned as a de facto anchor for the ECU, meaning there was only a minor difference between pegging a currency against ECU and pegging it against the D- mark. Sources: EC convergence reports 1. Italian lira, Spanish peseta, Portuguese escudo, Finish markka, Greek drachma, UK pound.

The eurozone was born with its first 1. January 1. 99. 9. The first enlargement of the eurozone, to Greece, took place on 1 January 2. The next enlargements were to states which joined the EU in 2. January in the year noted: Slovenia (2. Cyprus (2. 00. 8), Malta (2. Slovakia (2. 00. 9), Estonia (2.

Latvia (2. 01. 4), and Lithuania (2. All new EU members joining the bloc after the signing of the Maastricht treaty in 1.

However, the last of the five economic convergence criteria which need first to be complied with in order to qualify for euro adoption, is the exchange rate stability criterion, which requires having been an ERM- member for a minimum of two years without the presence of . This changed legal status of the eurozone could potentially cause them to conclude that the conditions for their promise to join were no longer valid, which . Before joining the eurozone, a state must spend two years in the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II).

As of January 2. 01. National Central Bank (NCB) of Denmark participates in ERM II. Denmark and the United Kingdom obtained special opt- outs in the original Maastricht Treaty. Both countries are legally exempt from joining the eurozone unless their governments decide otherwise, either by parliamentary vote or referendum. The other seven countries are obliged to adopt the euro in future, although the EU has so far not tried to enforce any time plan. They should join as soon as they fulfil the convergence criteria, which include being part of ERM II for two years.

Sweden, which joined the EU in 1. Maastricht Treaty was signed, is required to join the eurozone. However, the Swedish people turned down euro adoption in a 2. ERM II, which is voluntary. In Iceland, there was an increase in interest in joining the European Union, a pre- condition for adopting the euro.

Four states – Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City —. Nevertheless, they are not considered part of the eurozone by the ECB and do not have a seat in the ECB or Euro Group. Kosovo. However, sometimes the term eurozone is applied to all territories that have adopted the euro as their sole currency. Likewise there is no provision for a state to be expelled from the euro. If the country's own replacement currency was expected to devalue against the euro, the state might experience a large- scale exodus of money, whereas if the currency were expected to appreciate then more money would flow into the economy.

A rapidly appreciating currency would be detrimental to the country's exports. Banknotes must be printed for example, which takes up to six months. The prospect of this could lead to currency leaving the country and people withdrawing cash, causing a bank run and necessitating capital controls. Countries outside the eurozone are not represented in these institutions. Whereas all EU member states are part of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB). Non EU member states have no say in all three institutions, even those with monetary agreements such as Monaco. The ECB is entitled to authorise the design and printing of euro banknotes and the volume of euro coins minted, and its president is currently Mario Draghi.

The eurozone is represented politically by its finance ministers, known collectively as the Eurogroup, and is presided over by a president, currently Jeroen Dijsselbloem. The finance ministers of the EU member states that use the euro meet a day before a meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) of the Council of the European Union. The Group is not an official Council formation but when the full Eco.

Fin council votes on matters only affecting the eurozone, only Euro Group members are permitted to vote on it. It is in this forum, the Euro summit, that many eurozone reforms have been decided upon.

In 2. 01. 1, former French President. Nicolas Sarkozy pushed for these summits to become regular and twice a year in order for it to be a 'true economic government'. In April 2. 00. 8 in Brussels, Juncker suggested that the eurozone should be represented at the International Monetary Fund as a bloc, rather than each member state separately: .

It makes us look absolutely ridiculous. We are regarded as buffoons on the international scene. World bank, 2. 01. The values for EU members that are not also eurozone members are listed both separately and as part of the EU.

Levels are in percentages per annum. Between June 2. 00. October 2. 00. 8, the main refinancing operations were variable rate tenders, as opposed to fixed rate tenders. The figures indicated in the table from 2. The euro convergence criterion is 6. Fiscal policies. These guidelines are not binding, but are intended to represent policy coordination among the EU member states, so as to take into account the linked structures of their economies.

For their mutual assurance and stability of the currency, members of the eurozone have to respect the Stability and Growth Pact, which sets agreed limits on deficits and national debt, with associated sanctions for deviation. The Pact originally set a limit of 3% of GDP for the yearly deficit of all eurozone member states; with fines for any state which exceeded this amount. In 2. 00. 5, Portugal, Germany, and France had all exceeded this amount, but the Council of Ministers had not voted to fine those states. Subsequently, reforms were adopted to provide more flexibility and ensure that the deficit criteria took into account the economic conditions of the member states, and additional factors. The Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development downgraded its economic forecasts on 2.

March 2. 00. 8 for the eurozone for the first half of 2. Europe does not have room to ease fiscal or monetary policy, the 3. For the eurozone, the OECD now forecasts first- quarter GDP growth of just 0. The Fiscal Compact. The treaty entered into force on 1 January 2. Unlocked Iphone 3G Software Update there.

News: Breaking stories & updates. We've noticed you're adblocking.

We rely on advertising to help fund our award- winning journalism. We urge you to turn off your ad blocker for The Telegraph website so that you can continue to access our quality content in the future. Thank you for your support.