Asian Currency Unit

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Members of the ASEAN 10+3 circle

The Asian Currency Unit (ACU) is a proposed currency unit initially linked with the ASEAN+3 economic circle (ASEAN, the People's Republic of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea) but sometimes now linked with the proposed East Asian Community. The ACU takes its inspiration from the now defunct European Currency Unit.

The ACU as it has been proposed is as yet not a real currency, but a currency basket, i.e., a weighted index of East Asian currencies that will function as a benchmark for regional currency movements.

The Asian Development Bank is currently reviewing different options concerning the technical aspects related to the ACU calculation, including the nature of the basket, the choice of fixed weights vs. fixed units, the selection of currencies to be included in the basket, the choice of weights, the criteria for their periodical revision, and other aspects as well. After completing an internal review of these technical aspects, the Asian Development Bank expects to post several indexes for the ACU on its website in the next few months.

The Asian Development Bank was to announce the details of the ACU in March 2006 or later. However external pressures have delayed this announcement although the concept is still being studied in detail. [1] A panel discussion in February 2007 cited technical and political obtsacles as having prevented the project from advancing. [2]