Who Wanted the Single Currency, and Who Gained It – Libero Quotidiano

“We all remember the first time we held a euro banknote in our hands. Twenty years later, the euro has become one of the most powerful currencies in the world. The euro also reflects our values ​​as a global currency for sustainable investments. It is a powerful symbol of unity”: tweets Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission European Union, to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the single currency. As David Sassoli, President of the European Parliament, wrote on social media: “The euro is a symbol of peace and integration, the realization of a historical political vision, of a united continent with a single currency for a single market. Happy twentieth birthday, EUR! ». And could the memory of Romano Prodi, one of the promoters of the Continental dress, be missing? “We consider the euro a fact of only economic importance. But look at this issue of political importance because Europe with a single currency has more power in the world. When the euro was being prepared – the former prime minister revealed olive oil on Rai 1 radio – and meetings were held with Chinese presidents, they asked for nothing but the euro. Besides, he wasn’t interested in almost anything. They said: “We want the euro because if there is the euro next to the dollar, then there will also be room for our currency.” Thus we understand the political concept of pluralism for global governance that was behind the introduction of the euro. It was not just a banker’s game, as some stupid men called the euro,” the professor asserts: “It was the great beginning of change in the world. It then happened in the middle because with the great crisis the euro struggled to expand, but now it’s starting again. Indeed, besides the dollar, there is a euro that has its own role, which can not yet be compared with the dollar, but certainly important ».

The numbers actually belie Brody, just think of his historical sentence: “With the euro we’d work a day less, and earn as if we were working a day more.” Meanwhile, it must be said that dollars in an amount equal to 13 trillion dollars are circulated outside the United States, while outside the euro countries there are only 3.4 trillion euros. Moreover, with the exception of China, few continental countries have benefited from the single currency. Two years ago, a report by the German think tank Cep identified the winners and losers of the monetary union. Well, since the advent of the euro, every German has earned an average of 23 thousand euros, and every Italian has lost 74 thousand. The Dutch also got richer (+21,000 euros per capita), while the French (-55,996), the Portuguese (-40,604 euros) and Spaniards (-5,031 euros) lost.

Since the introduction of the single currency – as stated by the prestigious Study Center in Friborg – the erosion of international competitiveness has led to “lower economic growth and lower tax revenue. Greece and Italy, in particular, have experienced serious difficulties due to the fact that they have not been able to devalue their currency.” Prodi also pointed the finger at Italy and Greece, referring to the price explosion after January 1, 2002. “Only in these two countries did this phenomenon appear, because in both countries they did not want to observe it. My government had established, and Ciampi issued all technical decrees, first: there were mandatory rates for at least 6 months in lira and euro. So people can see how the change has been. Second: It was necessary to establish control committees at the governorate level. It is not done. And people took advantage of it.” Ah .. it is very easy to blame Berlusconi’s government, the government that managed to move from the lira to the euro. The numbers for the next 20 years experienced a 20-year stagnation caused by two main causes: a boom in real estate prices, linked to the lower cost of money (thanks to the euro), and less wage growth (which Germany set to export more). A fatal combination that impoverished Italy.