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 Geplaatst: 06-08-2018 03:42:56 Onderwerp: ut the country's policy |
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VILNIUS Henrik Lundqvist Adidas Jersey , July 22 (Xinhua) -- Euro adoption will allow Lithuania to reap full benefits of the EU integration, said chairman of the central bank of the Baltic country during an interview with Xinhua here on Tuesday.
"Joining the eurozone means fulfilling our legal obligation under the EU treaty and strengthening our EU integration, and we expect the euro will have a positive long-term effect on the economy," Vitas Vasiliauskas, chairman of the central bank, said to Xinhua.
The common single currency is likely to increase foreign trade by 5 to 10 percent, as the experiences of other euro area countries suggested, according to Vasiliauskas.
Lithuania is also expecting that euro adoption will lead lower interest rates on loans to the non-financial corporations and households of the Baltic country, Vasiliauskas pointed out.
"Increased exports and lower interest rates would result in higher economic activity and employment," said Vasiliauskas.
Lithuania is working on joining the euro zone not only because of the legal obligation as it has committed to introducing the euro under the EU treaty, but also due to policy consistency, illustrated by Vasiliauskas.
Lithuanian currency, litas, was re-pegged from the U.S. dollar to the euro in 2002, marking a clear stance that Lithuania intended to seek closer monetary integration with the eurozone.
A further step was seen on the same track in 2004 when Lithuania joined the Exchange Rate Mechanism.
"Therefore, euro adoption is a logical next step that would cement our European integration. It is also a confirmation that our European orientation is focused, consistent and irreversible," Vasiliauskas concluded.
Concerning risks of joining the single currency bloc, the chairman predicted that "no significant new risks are emerging with the euro adoption".
The reason lies in, according to Vasiliauskas, that "the economy of Lithuania has been strongly related to the euro area for quite a long time already, and euro could be seen as Lithuanian de facto currency".
It's not based on intention and enthusiasm for a member state of EU to join the eurozone. To be eligible, it has to comply with five main criteria set out in the Maastricht Treaty in 1992.
According to the criteria, annual inflation should be a maximum 1.5 percentage points above the average of the three best performing EU countries; the budget deficit should be at most 3 percent of GDP; government debt cannot exceed 60 percent of GDP.
"In the past years, Lithuania introduced new and more powerful tools to ensure stable economic growth and further convergence: the fiscal discipline law was imposed to ensure sound fiscal policy, macro-prudential instruments are preventing from rapid and unsustainable credit growth as well as unbalanced changes in real estate prices," said Vasiliauskas.
"The positive assessment by the European Commission and the European Central Bank on Lithuania's readiness to join the euro area is an indication that these efforts are bearing fruit," Vasiliauskas continued.
The European Parliament welcomed Lithuania as the expected new euro zone member with overwhelming majority of votes, in line with a European Commission recommendation, on July 16, ensuring a go-ahead for Lithuania to join the euro zone on Jan. 1, 2015.
On July 23, a final approval for the euro in Lithuania is expected from EU General Affairs Council in Brussels.
Support from the public of Lithuania is also increasing, along with the consistent good news from EU and other member states.
"The number of respondents anticipating positive consequences after the introduction of the euro has also increased," Vasiliauskas said.
"People also feel more informed about the euro: for the first time since Lithuania joined the EU, more respondents (50 percent) feel well informed compared to those who feel not informed (46 percent). This change shows that the public communication campaign, that has been already started, is effective," he continued.
Concerning the situation of increased prices that the public will face, Vasiliauskas believed that "various instruments are going to be used to help prevent unjustified price increases and strengthen the bargaining position of consumers".
"Price changes for the main goods and services will be actively monitored and published. Consumer organisations and the public will also be actively involved in price monitoring. Businesses are encouraged to sign the Code of Good Business Practice. Enterprises signing this code will commit to not using the euro as an excuse for raising prices," he said.
As the last of the Baltic countries to join the eurozone, Lithuania's participation is regarded by Vasiliauskas as "a natural step".
"It will make the Baltic region more integrated and more attractive for foreign direct investment," Vasiliauskas stressed.
"If Lithuania had decided not to join the eurozone, it would have raised doubts about the country's policy consistency and would have weakened the competitiveness position and limited ability to attract foreign direct investment," Vasiliauskas supposed.
Concerning the economic situation that EU faced in the past years, Vasiliauskas said that "economic confidence indicators in the EU are improving and domestic demand is starting to rebound".
"EU-bound exports of certain Lithuanian industries have started to increase after a certain period of stagnation. These favourable changes in economic development in the EU are not expected to be short-lived," he said.
Regarding the euro crisis and the global financial crisis, Vasiliauskas said Lithuania was able to withstand those without an external financial assistance program and showed substantial internal adjustment capacity.
"To ensure Lithuania's successful participation in the Economic and Monetary Union, as well as continuation of sustainab
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