That means stock exchanges will trade in euros and large businesses will keep track of finances in the euro. To ease the transition, bank customers can keep accounts in euros. The size of the new currency bloc -- with 290 million inhabitants -- will provide a stable economic and business environment. The EMU gives birth to a market as big as the United States and backed by a single currency. It represents twenty percent of world economic output and eighteen percent of world trade. The euro could quickly lead to huge capital flows in Europe, making the European firms more competitive in the global marketplace. Businesses will save money; the costs of changing currencies from country to country will be sharply reduced. Comparing prices will be quicker and interest rates will stabilize. All this will make long-term planning easier. The member countries are Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. .

             There have been questions about the EMU's strength and sustainability. In part, this plan forces governments to give up a measure of sovereignty over their economic affairs. The United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark are staying out of the EMU for this reason. Some critics say that the euro is being introduced forcibly and may cause conflict because of the political instability. According to Antonio Martino, the former prime minister of Italy, political unification has always preceded monetary unification (Wall Street Journal 1/4/99). The road to economic unification under the EMU has led the member countries in terms of budget deficits and inflation. However, they are still widely divergent. For example, Ireland's gross domestic product (GDP) grew about 8.5% in 1998, while Italy's GDP only grew 1.5%; and yet, both will have the same EU benchmark interest rate of 3%. This interest rate is tailored more to the needs of the EMU's core countries, France and Germany.