This is the 2007 Edition of the only book in print in the world about the Single Global Currency, and is the only book in the world priced in 143 currencies (down from 147 in the 2006 edition.).This number is significant, as it's the number of currencies required among the 192 U.N. members to...

Upon entry into the European Union, countries become members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), with a derogation from adopting the euro as their currency (that is, each country joining the EU commits to replace its national currency with the euro, but can choose when to request...

We discuss sources of volatility and vulnerability in the CEECs during the transition and leading up to EU accession. The Paper emphasizes the role of the transition shock as a source of extreme volatility on a much larger scale than the one observed during crises in emerging markets. The low...

This paper assesses the feasibility of forming a common currency in Latin America. First, we examine the cointegration and Granger causality of real effective exchange rates and find evidence supporting a monetary union comprised of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and...

This paper compares the euro area and the US in order to draw lessons for improving the Economic and Monetary Union. Although it is not perfect, the US comes closer to fulfilling the criteria of the Optimum Currency Area theory, and it did not experience the debt crisis that hit the euro area,...

About five decades the Franc CFA-Zone in Western and Central Africa was praised as incarnation of economic and political stability in Africa, backed by France. But free convertibility and fixed parity, guaranteed by the French Treasury, mainly served the interest of a small elite of the...

The paper reviews the experience of regional economic cooperation in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Conceived as a regional security alliance, the GCC has evolved to become a common market in the making. All six GCC countries participate in the common market project, and additional...

According to the Maastricht Treaty, EMS countries will be able to join EMU if their inflation rates are not more than 1.5% higher than the average of the three lowest inflation rates in the EMS. In this paper I analyse the likelihood of inflation rates converging to the levels set out in the...

This paper examines the case for a monetary union, involving a common currency and a common central bank, between Australia and New Zealand. It gives a statistical profile of features of the economies that are relevant to the economic debate. The analysis follows a neo-Mundellian framework that...

To qualify for full membership in the Economic and Monetary Union, member states had to meet strict budget deficit and government debt convergence criteria. This study analyzes whether deficits and indebtedness in the 1990s in Spain, Italy, Portugal and Greece were associated with a shift from...