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Since the end of WW1, the Euro has been the dream of many a politician; the idea being to bind the member states of the EU together with a single currency that would facilitate trade and tourism and prevent war.

In some respects the Euro was a success, and certainly the ambition of having a single currency between multiple countries has been achieved. However in light of the current Eurozone crisis it’s hard to say whether this success is likely to continue, or even whether it should have begun in the first place. While this is a matter of opinion, and there is still everything to play for, the history of the Euro has no doubt been a colorful and fascinating one. Here we will look in more detail at the history of the Euro from its inception to the current challenges it faces.

 

1999

 

1999 is an important day for the history of the Euro and marks its inception.

 

2001

 

Greece joins the Euro

 

2002

 

Coins and notes are now introduced

 

2007

 

Slovenia joins

 

2008

 

More countries join the Euro: Malta and Cyprus. This is also the point in the history of the Euro when things started to become more complicated and the growing financial crisis leads the EU leaders to agree a 200 billion Euro stimulus plan to boost the economy.

 

2009

 

Slovakia joins. Meanwhile Estonia, Denmark, Lithuania and Latvia join the ‘Exchange Rate Mechanism’ which brings the currencies and policies in line with the Euro to prepare for joining.

 

The EU orders France, Spain, Ireland and Greece to reduce budget deficits (which is the difference between spending versus tax).

 

Concerns grow about the debts of some EU member states. Greece admits to debts of 300 billion Euros – the largest in modern history. This is 113% of their GDP which is double the agreed Eurozone limit. This is a difficult time in the history of the Euro.

 

2010

 

A report condemns inconsistencies in Greek accounting procedures and revises the budget deficit to 12.7% from 3.7% – four times the maximum allowed by EU rules. This is later fixed to 13.6%. Concerns grow regarding other heavily indebted countries – Portugal, Ireland and Spain. The Euro falls against the dollar and the pound.

 

The Eurozone agrees a safety net of 22 billion Euros to help Greece. Greece are told to cut spending and this results in riots and protests. The EU agrees to provide up to 30 billion in loans. Eventually in May the Eurozone members provide Greece with a 110 billion bailout package funded by wealthier members such as Germany. The Euro continues to fall and the Irish Republic comes under scrutiny before receiving a bailout package of 85 billion Euros. Rumors mount that Portugal will be the next bailout in the history of the Euro.

 

2011

 

Estonia joins the Euro as the 17^th member state. The Eurozone meanwhile sets up a bailout fund – the ‘European Stability Mechanism’ worth 500 billion. In May Portugal receives a bailout of 78 billion. Rumors mount that Greece will need to be the first country in the history of the Euro to leave the currency, but a new series of austerity measures (spending cuts) wins approval from the EU. They receive another bailout of 109 billion Euros.

 

European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso warns of contagion of countries outside the Eurozone. Yields on bonds from Italy and Spain rise dramatically and Germany falls to all-time lows as a result of investors needing huge returns. The European Central Bank commits to buy Italian and Spanish bonds. Spain and Italy restrict spending.

 

Evangelos Venizelos, Finance Minster for Greece, accuses the EU of using Greece as a scapegoat for their incompetence. Growth in the Eurozone’s private sector shrinks for the first time in 2 years. US and UK politicians urge the Eurozone to try to prevent the spreading of its financial difficulties. Franco Belgium bank Dexia receives a bailout.

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Recently many European countries made the switch to the Euro meaning that they used a single currency. Thirteen countries did this in total, those thirteen comprising of:

For tourists travelling into Europe this made life much simpler. Knowing the Euro exchange rates would mean that you could understand the value of your currency quickly and easily in any of these countries. At the same time it would mean that you wouldn’t have to carry lots of different currencies on you when travelling between European countries but instead could just have the one currency and use it across all these different territories.

Still though it is important to know the Euro exchange rates so that you can have the correct money for the country you are visiting and so you know roughly what you are spending in your own cash when abroad (it’s otherwise easy to spend too much as it doesn’t feel like ‘real’ money unless you convert it in your head). If you are travelling between countries that use the Euro and those that do not meanwhile then you might want to change your money as you travel and in this case knowing the Euro exchange rates can help you to figure how much you are going to get for your Zloty or pounds. At the same time it can be interesting to know the Euro exchange rates across all the countries as it paints a picture of the success of the Euro and where it stands compared to other currencies.

However any guide to Euro exchange rates is going to be changeable as the values of currencies are changing constantly – sometimes drastically. At the same time values like ’1.29382′ are not going to be of any use when trying to calculate how much something is ‘really worth’ in a European market unless you’re rain man (and even if you remembered these values for each country they would change by the time you came to use them). Here then we will look at the rough exchange rates as they stand so that you can quickly refer to them when needs be or get a basic picture of the currency’s value.

(Please keep in mind that these rates are changing every minute and these example should only be used to get a basic idea of the exchange rate)

1 Euro equals…

1.30 American Dollars

5.35 Argentine Peso

1.31 Australian Dollars

2.20 Brazillian Reals

0.80 British Pounds

1.30 Canadian Dollars

645 Chilean Pesos

8.60 Chinese Yuan

2,411 Colombian Peso

7.40 Croation Kuna

7.44 Danish Krone

10 Hong Kong Dollars

277 Hungarian Forint

154 Icelandic Krona

59 Indian Rupee

4.60 Israeli New Shekei

108 Japanese Yen

2.50 Libyan Dinar

3.99 Malaysian Ringgit

15.80 Mexican Pesos

1.70 New Zealand Dollars

7.70 Norwegian Kroner

.50 Omani Rial

111.15 Pakistan Rupees

4.72 Qatar Rial

4.25 Romanian Leu

40 Russian Ruble

4.87 Saudi Riyal

1.68 Signapore Dollars

9 South African Rand

1462 South Korean Won

144 Sri Lanka Rupees

8.87 Swedish Krona

1.25 Swiss Francs

37.87 Taiwan Dollars

40 Thai Baht

8.30 Trinidad/Tobago Dollars

5.60 Venezuelan Bolivar

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If you’re heading to Europe then you will be required to take with you some local currency. In many cases this will involve carrying Euro as so many European countries have now moved over to that currency. The problem with carrying Euro however is that it means that you are potentially susceptible to losing them or having them stolen. When we are in our own country we normally hold onto just a debit card or credit card, but if we’re travelling abroad in Europe then this will often mean that we can’t use these cars without some kind of hefty fine.

So how do you get around the problem of carrying Euro when staying in the country? Fortunately there are a few things you can do. Here are some suggestions:

Purchase a safety deposit box: Safety deposit boxes are highly useful for storing your Euros and your other belongings. These are the same as in any other country and provide you with a metal tin that can be locked (often digitally) and to which only you know the PIN number to get in. Then you only need carry Euro that you need for that day.

Travellers cheques: Another option is to take travellers cheques which again means you only carry Euro when you need them. These are cheques that can only be cashed by you and so are worthless to steel, but that can be exchanged for money at many European hotels. The downside is that it can sometimes be a pain finding places to change them – and just because no one else can use them doesn’t mean it’s not annoying if they go missing and leave you penniless.

International cars: A great idea is to set up a card that you can use internationally without a fee. This can mean some credit cards, or debit cards such as Nationwide. This then means free withdrawals so you don’t need to carry Euro at all.

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European currencies is a topic that has changed a lot in the last decade or so thanks to the European integration and the introduction of the Euro. The Euro is a European currency introduced by the EU in a bid to facilitate the free trade of goods and tourism between European countries. Sixteen of the twenty seven EU member states currently use the Euro while the others have chosen to continue using their own European currencies.

For travelling to those countries that do use the Euro, and particularly for travelling between them, this makes like much easier when visiting Europe as it means that you are able to move between countries without having to get your currencies changed multiple times or without having to take and organise various different European currencies with you on your travels. This is also more cost effective as it can be quite expensive to change currencies depending on where you get them changed. The Euro then aimed to provide a single European currency for multiple countries and this has been a point of controversy with many successes and set backs. There is strength in numbers but at the same time a struggling economy in one country can now have repercussions elsewhere.

The Euro symbol interestingly was chosen to resemble the Greek epsilon as an homage to a country that is often considered the ‘cradle’ of Western civilisation. The countries currently using the Euro are Austria, Belgium, Finland, French, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxemberg, Portugal, Spain, the Vatican, Greece, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta, the Netherlands, San Marino, and Slovakia.

As this does not cover all European countries then, or even all EU member states, it is important still to check the European currency before you travel to a European country. In Poland the currency is still the Zlot for instance, while in England it is still the pound. As when travelling abroad anywhere it is important to check the exchange rate and there are many websites where you can do this. At the same time you should also decide on what you think will make the best way to keep your European currencies – in cash, as travellers’ cheques, or another form. If you want to keep your European currencies as cash then you should look at getting your currencies as soon as possible to ensure you’re not left travelling to another country with no way of spending money. With travellers’ cheques you don’t need to worry about your money getting lost as no one else can use it, but on the other hand you also will need to find a place to get your cheques changed from time to time which can sometimes be inconvenient. Possibly the best solution, particularly when you will need multiple European currencies, is to take out an account with an international bank – this way you will be able to use your account in any European country and withdraw money with no charge and with no need to carry lots of cash around with you. Regardless, European currencies are something you always need to take into account (very bad pun unintended) when travelling to Europe and particularly when travelling across Europe.

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The Euro was established and came into practice with the sole aim of giving the Dollar a tough time as the universal currency. But, as speculated, it hasn’t helped the European economy much; rather, according to surreys and news reports, growth rate of many European nations was just a meager 1.4% in the last fiscal year. In fact, many countries in the European Union are facing recession under inflationary pressures as well as pressures of rising food and oil prices worldwide.

Spain, Germany and Britain are well on their course to recession, which happens when the growth falls for two consecutive years, this might happen to other large economies of the European Union as well, considering the catastrophic effect that mortgage and sub-prime crisis has had on the developed economies of the European Union.

Speaking of Germany, both the customers and the sellers have kept a tight control over their purses- a situation known as “purse string tightening”.  On the bigger prospective, Germany still has a robust economy, good employment rate and strong exports, even with a small growth rate of 1.8%. Netherlands and Poland, though much smaller than Germany and Britain in terms of economy, have been able to stand the test of these financial blows rather well and are growing at rates far better than the average Euro zone averages.

Inflation has much to do with the rising financial crisis, which is attributed to rising oil and food prices. Jaun Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank further warns that inflation is not going to cool down in the near future. He remarks that inflation may come down slightly in 2009, allowing the economy to stabilize a bit, but the markets and investors, and therefore the whole economy will be watchful and volatile for a longer than expected period.

The only option seen by most economists under the present prospective is to cut the interest rates to give the economy a boost, but Mr. Trichet dismissed this proposal because this would lead to a further aggravation of inflation according to him, and the Union Bank’s main aim is to control and stabilize prices rather than push the growth as of right now.

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