Eurozone

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Life in the European Union
Citizenship Culture Demographics Economy Education Enlargement Euro Foreign relations	Geography History Institutions Languages Military Politics Sport Statistics

The Eurozone (also called Euro Area, Eurosystem or Euroland) is the subset of European Union member states which have adopted the euro, creating a currency union. The European Central Bank is responsible for monetary policy within the zone.

Contents 1 Countries with the euro as currency 1.1 Official members 1.2 Non-member states with formal euro agreements 1.3 Non-member states without formal euro agreements 2 Non-Eurozone EU countries 2.1 Inside ERM II 2.1.1 Denmark 2.1.2 Cyprus 2.1.3 Malta 2.1.4 Slovakia 2.1.5 Lithuania 2.1.6 Estonia 2.1.7 Latvia 2.2 Outside ERM II 2.2.1 Bulgaria 2.2.2 Czech Republic 2.2.3 Hungary 2.2.4 Poland 2.2.5 Romania 2.2.6 Sweden 2.2.7 United Kingdom 2.2.7.1 Sterling zone 2.2.7.2 Regional British banknotes 2.3 Euro adoption by the member states using other currencies 3 Non-EU currencies pegged to the euro 4 People affected by the euro 5 Inflation 6 Fiscal policies 7 Notes 8 See also

[edit] Countries with the euro as currency

[edit] Official members

In 1998 eleven EU member-states had met the convergence criteria, and the Eurozone came into existence with the official launch of the euro on 1 January 1999. Greece qualified in 2000 and was admitted on 1 January 2001. Physical coins and banknotes were introduced on 1 January 2002. Slovenia qualified in 2006 and was admitted on 1 January 2007 bringing total Eurozone membership to its current level of over 316 million people and thirteen member states:

•  Austria
•  Belgium
•  Finland
•  France (except Pacific territories using CFP franc)
•  Germany
•  Greece
•  Ireland
•  Italy
•  Luxembourg
•  Netherlands (except Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles using Aruban florin and Antillean guilder respectively)
•  Portugal
•  Slovenia
•  Spain

[edit] Non-member states with formal euro agreements

Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City also use the euro, although they are officially neither euro members nor members of the EU. (They previously used currencies that were replaced by the euro: Vatican and San Marino had their currencies pegged to the Italian lira (Vatican and San marinese lira) and Monaco used the Monegasque franc, which was pegged on a 1:1 basis to the French franc).

These countries use the euro by virtue of agreements^[1] concluded with EU member states (Italy in the case of San Marino and Vatican City, France in the case of Monaco), on behalf of the European Community. Those arrangements have been approved by the European Commission and the European Council. In virtue of these agreements, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican city state are currently allowed to issue a limited amount of euro coins with their own national symbols on the obverse every year. In practice, Monaco's coins are minted by France, and coins for the Vatican and San Marino coins are minted by Italy. Nevertheless, coins issued by the Vatican, by Monaco and by San Marino are legal tender in the Eurozone, and vice versa.

San Marino, Monaco and the Vatican currently do not issue euro banknotes, using instead the ones issued by eurozone member states.

In the case of the Vatican, there was a Vatican currency, known as Vatican lira, that had the same value as the Italian lira (fixed exchange rate at 1:1). The Italian mint was responsible for minting a limited number of Vatican lira coins. By virtue of an agreement between Italy and the Vatican, both currencies could be used in the territories of both countries (as well as San Marino). After the euro switchover the Vatican adopted the Euro as its currency. Euro banknotes and coins issued by any eurozone member state are legal tender.

[edit] Non-member states without formal euro agreements

Andorra does not have an official currency and hence no specific euro coins. It previously used the French franc and Spanish peseta as de facto legal tender currency. There has never been a monetary arrangement with either Spain or France; however, the EU and Andorra are currently in negotiations regarding the official status of the euro in Andorra. According to Andorran officials, Andorra would have minted its own euro coins for the first time in 2006; as of January 2007, this has not yet happened, partially due to stalling over bank secrets in December 2005.^[2]

Likewise, Montenegro and Kosovo, which used to have the German mark as their de facto currency, also adopted the euro without having entered into any legal arrangements with the EU explicitly permitting them to do so. Kosovo uses the euro instead of the Serbian dinar, mainly for political reasons^{[citation needed]}.

As of 1 December 2002, North Korea has replaced the U.S. dollar with the euro as its official currency for international trading. (Its internal currency, the won, is not convertible and thus cannot be used to purchase foreign goods.) The euro also enjoys popularity domestically, especially among resident foreigners.

Prior to the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, President Saddam Hussein announced that he intended to price Iraqi oil in euros, rather than US dollars, since the majority of Iraqi oil trade was with the EU, India and the People's Republic of China, not with the United States.

Iceland's foreign minister Valgerður Sverrisdóttir has said in an interview on 15 January 2007 that she seriously wishes to look into whether Iceland can join the Euro without being a member of the EU. She believes it is difficult to maintain an independent currency in a small economy on the open European market.^[3]

[edit] Non-Eurozone EU countries

The fourteen countries of the European Union that do not use the euro are: Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

Denmark and the United Kingdom obtained special derogations in the original Maastricht Treaty of the European Union. Both countries are not legally required to join the Eurozone unless their governments decide otherwise, either by parliamentary vote or referendum. Sweden, however, did not, and is technically obliged to introduce the euro at some point in the future.

[edit] Inside ERM II

As of 1 May 2004, the ten National Central Banks (NCBs) of the new member countries are party to the second European Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II). The following table shows the dates when each member state became a full participant in the ERM II mechanism.

Date of entry	Country	Notes
1 January 1999	Denmark	The Danish krone entered the ERM II in 1999, when the euro was created. Since then, it floats against the euro in ±2.25% range (1 EUR = 7.46038 DKK).
28 June 2004	Estonia	The Estonian kroon had been pegged to the German mark since its re-introduction on 20 June 1992, and then to the euro (1 EUR = 15.6466 EEK).
	Lithuania	The Lithuanian litas was pegged to the US dollar until 2 February 2002, when it switched to a euro peg (1 EUR = 3.45280 LTL).
2 May 2005	Cyprus	The Cypriot pound floats in a ±15% range against the euro (1 EUR = 0.585274 CYP).
	Latvia	Latvia has a currency board arrangement whose anchor switched from the SDR to the euro on 1 January 2005. The current lats fluctuation margin is ±1% against the euro (1 EUR = 0.702804 LVL).
	Malta	The Maltese lira floats in a ±15% range against the euro (1 EUR = 0.429300 MTL).
28 November 2005	Slovakia	The Slovak koruna now floats in a ±15% range against the euro (1 EUR = 35.4424 SKK[4], was 38.4550 SKK before 17 March 2007).[5] [6]

[edit] Denmark

A referendum on joining the Eurozone was held on 28 September 2000, resulting in a 53.2% vote against joining. If Denmark ever joins, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which are not part of the EU, but of Denmark, would have to hold a separate referendum to decide whether they want to switch to the euro. The outcome is uncertain, as current trends seem to favour independence from Denmark.

[edit] Cyprus

Cyprus aims to adopt the euro on 1 January 2008.^[7] A formal letter of application was submitted on 13 February 2007. [1] The decision will be taken in June 2007. [2]

[edit] Malta

Malta aims to adopt the euro on 1 January 2008. The aims were officially confirmed on 26 February 2007, and the decision will be taken in June. [3]

[edit] Slovakia

Slovakia aims to adopt the euro on 1 January 2009.

[edit] Lithuania

Lithuania originally set 1 January 2007 as the target date for joining the Euro, but their application was rejected by the European Commission because inflation was slightly higher than the permitted maximum ^[8]. In December 2006 the government approved a new convergence plan which, whilst reaffirming that the government wanted to join the Eurozone "as soon as possible", said that expected inflation increases in 2007-8 would mean the best period for joining the euro would be 2010 or after ^[9]. An opinion poll published in January 2007 showed that more Lithuanians opposed Euro adoption than supported it ^[8].

[edit] Estonia

Estonia aims to adopt the euro on 1 January 2010. The kroon is pegged to the euro at a fixed rate, almost all shops show prices in euro and many accept it. Stamps also carry their euro face value^[10]. Estonia originally aimed to adopt the euro on 1 January 2007, but this was postponed to 1 January 2008 (because Estonia didn't meet the inflation criterion^[11][12]) and then to the current date of 1 January 2010^[13].

[edit] Latvia

Latvia expects to adopt the euro between 2010 and 2012^[14], but originally aimed to adopt the euro on 1 January 2008. Due to problems with inflation, Latvia was forced to delay this date^[15].

[edit] Outside ERM II

[edit] Bulgaria

Bulgaria plans to join the ERM II by the summer of 2007.^[16] The Bulgarian lev has been pegged to the euro since 1997 (between 1997 and 1999, before the euro came into existence, the lev was pegged to the German Mark) and the country has fulfilled the great majority of the EMU membership criteria. As a result of that, Bulgaria plans to adopt the euro on 1 January 2010.

[edit] Czech Republic

Since joining the EU in 2004, the Czech Republic has adopted a fiscal and monetary policy that aims to align its macroeconomic conditions with the rest of the European Union. Currently, the most pressing issue is the large Czech fiscal deficit. Originally, the Czech Republic aimed for entry into the ERM II in 2008 or 2009, but the current government has officially dropped the 2010 target date, saying it will clearly not meet the economic criteria. 2012 has been suggested as the earliest changeover date. ^[17]

[edit] Hungary

Hungary plans to adopt the euro as its official currency on 1 January 2010, although unofficial assessments suggest it will only happen by 2011.

[edit] Poland

Although Poland is obliged to join the Eurozone as "part of the EU package", Polish president Lech Kaczyński has said he wants to organize a referendum on euro adoption. Strictly speaking, the Polish people already voted in favour of euro adoption when it approved the EU entry referendum, which included EMU entry, by a substantial majority (77%). EU commissioner Joaquin Almunia reminded Poland that it does not have an EMU opt-out clause like the UK and Denmark do.

In May 2006 Poland finally set its target date for euro introduction for 1 January 2011.

[edit] Romania

Romanian government has announced plans to join the Eurozone by 2014. The plan also stipulates to adhere to the ERM-II no sooner than 2012. ^[18] To simplify future adjustments to ATMs at the adoption of the euro, when the Romanian new leu was adopted in 2005 (at 10,000 old lei to 1 new leu) the new banknotes were issued to the same physical proportions as euro banknotes. The old leu notes were substantially wider than the new notes.

[edit] Sweden

Sweden does not have any derogation by any protocol or treaty. Nevertheless, Sweden decided in 1997 not to join the Eurozone from the beginning, and has not made any effort to fulfil the required criteria for a stable exchange rate.

The first referendum held in Sweden regarding the adoption of the Euro was on 13 November 1994. The adoption of the euro is an integral part of its Treaty of Accession to the European Union. The vote was 53% in favour for joining the EU, and thus the Eurozone.

The consultative national referendum on 14 September 2003, resulted in a rejection of adopting the euro, with the following figures: Yes 42.0%, No 55.9%. Consequently, the decision has been postponed, as all political parties have pledged to uphold the results for the time being. Former Prime Minister Göran Persson said in September 2004 that the Swedish membership will definitely not happen before the 2010 General Election^{[19] [20]}.

The decision of Sweden not to adopt the euro in the near future is generally accepted within the European Union. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, and as such did not have the opportunity to gain an opt-out in the Maastricht treaty, which was already concluded in 1992. In 1995, however, the euro did not exist, neither physically (2002) nor legally (1999), and maybe because of this the European Commission has not taken any legal action about fulfilling this Swedish commitment so far. It has been warned however, that any move similar to that of Sweden in the new states will not be tolerated, as it has been with Sweden.

[edit] United Kingdom

The British government under Prime Minister Tony Blair has committed itself to a triple-approval procedure before joining the Eurozone, involving approval by the Cabinet, Parliament, and the British electorate in a referendum.

Unlike other European countries, where the euro is seen mostly as an essential building block in a more politically integrated Europe, in the United Kingdom the possible benefits of Eurozone membership are seen mostly as principally economic, and an assessment of British membership based on five economic tests was published on 9 June 2003 by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown.

Though maintaining the government's positive view on the euro, the report came out against membership because four out of the five tests were not passed.

Mr. Brown stated^[21] in June 2003 that the best exchange rate for the UK to join the single currency would be around 73 pence per euro (a value which the pair had never reached). This rate has not been formalised as an official condition of entry.

Opinion polls^[22] in the UK show a consistent majority of the British public to be against joining the Eurozone. Some perceive loss of political and economic sovereignty; others are unconvinced of the case for change from their familiar currency. A referendum in the near future has been ruled out.

See also: Five economic tests.

[edit] Sterling zone

If the United Kingdom were to join the Eurozone, this may affect those jurisdictions that also use the pound sterling, or which have a currency on a par with sterling, the sterling area.

The Crown dependencies use variants of the pound sterling, the Isle of Man pound, Jersey pound, Guernsey pound, and Alderney pound. The all share the same ISO 4217 code GBP.

Some other British Overseas Territories have their currencies fixed at par with sterling: the exchange rate is fixed so that £1 in the local currency equals £1 in sterling. They are Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands and Saint Helena.

The French overseas departments and territories were faced with a similar situation when France joined the eurozone. Those which used the French franc themselves switched to using euros. Some overseas territories used the CFP franc. Whilst these had fixed exchange rates with the French franc, they were not at par - in fact for various historical reasons they were worth considerably less, at approximately 5 centimes. Both the CFA and CFP franc remain in existence, but are now linked to the euro at fixed rates instead. These fixed rates and free convertibility of these currencies are maintained at the expense of the French Treasury. A similar situation exists with the Comorian franc, which is also now fixed against the euro.

The sterling zone territories therefore have four options:

• Enter the eurozone as a non-EU member, either as a distinct national variant of the euro — just as Monaco and the Vatican have done. The EU has demanded that 'monetary agreements' be entered into by non-EU members who wish to issue their own euro coinage, and has pressured Andorra into not issuing their own coins until this is resolved. Such agreements, the EU has stated, must include adherence to EU banking and finance regulation.
• Use standard euro coins issued by the UK or other eurozone countries. This may be perceived by some as losing an important symbol of independence.
• Maintain their existing currency, but peg at a fixed rate with the euro. However, maintaining a fixed rate against the attentions of currency speculators can be extremely expensive, as the UK found on Black Wednesday. For a small country this could be unviable.
• Adopt a free-floating currency, or a currency fixed to another currency, as the Jersey government has hinted ^[23]

Gibraltar is in a separate position, as it is within the EU (as part of the UK's membership). If the UK were to adopt the euro it might not be possible to implement an opt-out for Gibraltar. It is unclear whether Gibraltar would be subject to its own referendum or would be included in a UK referendum, since Gibraltar votes as a part of the UK in European parliamentary elections.

[edit] Regional British banknotes

Currently, some private banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland are able to print and issue sterling banknotes of their own design. This is seen by many in these areas as an important part of their regional identities.

Unless the UK Government were able to negotiate a suitable derogation from existing EU rules, it would not be possible for these private issues of banknotes to continue upon the UK joining the eurozone. The European Central Bank only permits National Central Banks to issue banknotes. All euro banknotes are standardised across the eurozone, without any national variation.

National variation is allowed in the design of euro coins, and it is possible that the Royal Mint could continue to include the symbols of the home nations on the British designed coinage, although this would have to be included in place of the Queen's portrait.

[edit] Euro adoption by the member states using other currencies

The new member states should be adopting the euro as soon as appropriate guidelines are met. For these new member states, the single currency was "part of the package" of European Union membership – unlike the UK and Denmark, "opting out" is not permitted.

The dates these ten states are expected to enter the third stage of the EMU and adopt the euro vary: 1 January 2008 for Cyprus and Malta; 2009 for Slovakia; early 2010 for Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary and Estonia; 2011 for Poland; 2014 for Romania. The Czech Republic was set to join on 1 January 2010, but can no longer do so due to economic conditions. A new date has not been set, but it won't probably be before 2012.

On 16 May 2006 the European Commission recommended Slovenia to become the only new member of the Eurozone. This occurred on 1 January 2007.

Showing the ability to move towards full economic and monetary union is one requisite of "good membership". The ECB and European Commission produce reports every two years analyzing the economic and other conditions of non-eurozone EU members, reporting on their suitability for joining the Eurozone. The first to include the 10 new members was published in October 2004^[24]. The German Bundesbank, a major and arguably the most important national bank in the ESCB, is criticizing the bloc's rush to enlarge the single currency zone.

	Malta	Cyprus	Slovakia	Estonia	Lithuania	Bulgaria	Hungary
Target date for euro adoption	1 January 2008	1 January 2008 [25]	1 January 2009	1 January 2010 [26]	1 January 2010	1 January 2010	1 January 2010
ERM II entry	2 May 2005	2 May 2005	28 Nov 2005	28 June 2004	28 June 2004	Expected in early 2007[27]
Co-ordinating institution	Two Committees appointed on 13 June 2005: a Steering Committee and a Euro Changeover Committee reporting to it	Joint coordination by the Minister of Finance and the Central Bank of Cyprus, created on 29 December 2004	Ministry of Finance	The National Changeover Committee, created on 27 January 2005	Commission for the Coordination of the Adoption of the euro in Lithuania, created on 30 May 2005		Preparatory work is ongoing in the Ministry of Finance and Magyar Nemzeti Bank (Central Bank of Hungary)
Approved National Changeover Plan	[28]		First draft approved on September 1, 2005[29]	Report approved by the government on 21 June 2005. NCP will be approved in November 2005	First version approved by the government on 27 September 2005	Not yet approved
Type of scenario	Big-Bang	Big-Bang	Big-Bang	Big-Bang	Big-Bang		Big-Bang Big-Bang with possible phase out features
Dual circulation period	1 month	1 month	16 days	2 weeks		15 days	1 month
Exchange of national currency		Comm. banks: coins and notes for 6 months. Central bank: banknotes for 10 years and coins for 2 years.	Comm. bank: banknotes until end 2009, coins until June 2009. Central bank: banknotes indefinitely, coins for 5 years	Comm. banks at least 6 months, Central bank indefinitely	Commercial banks 60 days, Central bank indefinitely.
Dual display of prices		from the first day of the second month after fixing of conversion rate until 6 months after the adoption	Compulsory: from one month after fixing of conversion rate till one year after euro adoption. Voluntary: for an additional 6 months	6 months before and after €-day	60 calendar days before until 60 days after €-day
National mint	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
National side	Approved	Approved	Approved	Approved	Approved	Not yet decided	Not yet decided
Nr of different coin designs	3	3	3	1	3
Need for banknotes and coins		450 million coins (€147m) and 85 million banknotes (€1.7b)		150-200 million coins	118.3 million banknotes, 290 million coins
Law adaptations	Umbrella law and a second and a third group of laws under consideration	Umbrella law approved on 15 March 2007		Umbrella law under consideration	Draft law on the adoption of the euro is prepared
Communication strategy	In process	Undertaken by the Central Bank's "Communication Committee for the adoption of the euro" established on 18 January 2005		Endorsed by the National Changeover Committee on 21 June 2005	Endorsed by the government on 27 September 2005
	Latvia	Czech Republic	Poland	Romania	Sweden	Denmark	United Kingdom
Target date for euro adoption	Not before 2010 [30]	Not before 2012[17]	1 January 2011	1 January 2014 [31]	Not under consideration	Not under consideration	Not under consideration
ERM II entry	2 May 2005			Not before 2012	Not under consideration	1 January 1999	Not under consideration
Co-ordinating institution	The Steering Committee for the preparation and coordination of the euro changeover was established on 18 July 2005		Inter-institutional working group MoF-NBP
Approved National Changeover Plan	Approved on 6 July 2005	The Czech Republic’s Euro Accession Strategy was approved by the Government in October 2003
Type of scenario	Big-Bang with possible phase out features		Big-Bang
Dual circulation period	2 weeks
Exchange of national currency	Central bank: indefinitely
Dual display of prices	October 2007-June 2008
National mint	No	Yes	Yes		Yes
National side	Approved	Competition under consideration	Public survey under consideration	Not yet decided	Not yet decided
Nr of different coin designs	4
Need for banknotes and coins	87 million banknotes and 300 million coins	230 million banknotes and 950 million coins
Law adaptations
Communication strategy

[edit] Non-EU currencies pegged to the euro

Main article: Currencies related to the euro

Cape Verde's currency was pegged to the Portuguese escudo, and now the euro. Bosnia and Herzegovina's currency, the convertible mark, was pegged to the German Mark (and now the euro). The CFA and Comorian francs, used in former French colonies, and the CFP franc, used in French Pacific Ocean territories, were pegged to the French franc, and now the euro.

[edit] People affected by the euro

Category	Population	Countries and territories
Official members	317 million	Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain
Other European countries and territories using the euro	2.7 million	Andorra, Kosovo, Montenegro, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City
EU countries with currencies pegged to the euro (or at a narrow margin)	27 million	Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Slovakia
Other European countries with currencies pegged to the euro	4 million	Bosnia and Herzegovina
African countries using CFA francs	110 million	Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Republic of the Congo, Sénégal, Togo
Other countries and territories with currencies pegged to the euro	35 million	Cape Verde, Comoros, Morocco, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna
Total	496 million	44 countries and 5 areas.

[edit] Inflation

• mid 1999: 1%
• mid 2000: 2%
• mid 2001: 2.8%
• mid 2002: 1.9%
• mid 2003: 1.9%
• May 2004: 2.5%
• May 2005: 1.9%

[edit] Fiscal policies

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. Compliance with the Stability and Growth Pact has proven difficult in many countries. To respect the Pact, governments had to curb public expenses, but this led to slower growth and consequently smaller income for public budgets, leading to vicious circle. Even countries expected to be the most rigorous and who proposed these limits such as Germany exceeded the public deficit limits or could respect them only with enormous difficulties.

[edit] Notes

[edit] See also

• European System of Central Banks
• Economy of Europe
• Economy of the European Union
• Economic policy
• Monetary union
• Economic and monetary union
• Special member state territories and their relations with the European Union

v • d • e Euro-related topics
Topics	Eurozone · Currencies related to the euro · European Monetary System · European Currency Unit · European Exchange Rate Mechanism · Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union · Stability and Growth Pact · Introduction of the euro · Euro coins · Euro banknotes · Euro sign · Linguistic issues concerning the euro
Coins by country – adopted	Austria · Belgium · Finland · France · Germany · Greece · Ireland · Italy · Luxembourg · Monaco · Netherlands · Portugal · San Marino · Slovenia · Spain · Vatican
Coins by country – future	Bulgaria · Cyprus · Czech Rep. · Estonia · Hungary · Latvia · Lithuania · Malta · Poland · Romania · Slovakia
Coins by country – other	Andorra · Denmark · Sweden ·  UK
Coins by denomination	€0.01 · €0.02 · €0.05 · €0.10 · €0.20 · €0.50 · €1 · €2 · €2 commemorative coins
Pre-euro currencies	Austrian Schilling · Belgian franc · Dutch gulden · Finnish mark · French franc · German Mark  · Greek drachma · Irish pound (punt) · Italian lira · Luxembourgish franc · Monegasque franc · Portuguese escudo · Sammarinese lira · Slovenian tolar · Spanish peseta · Vatican lira
ERM II currencies	Cypriot pound · Danish krone · Estonian kroon · Latvian lats · Lithuanian litas · Maltese lira · Slovak koruna
Other EU currencies	British pound · Bulgarian lev · Czech koruna · Gibraltar pound · Hungarian forint · Polish złoty · Romanian leu · Swedish krona
Note: Denmark and the UK currently opt to maintain their national currencies, the krone and the pound. Sweden has not made any further efforts towards its obligation to join (and withdraw the krona) after the failed referendum in 2003.