2005-04-21
Dr Raimondas Kuodis, Director of the Economics Department of the Bank of Lithuania, reviewed Lithuania’s compliance with the Maastricht convergence criteria, presented an assessment of the macroeconomic environment and pointed out the advantages of the transition to the single EU currency at the event entitled “Euro Forecast” held at the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences in Vilnius on 20 April.
According to Mr Kuodis, the biggest challenge was compliance with the price stability criterion, as the inflation requirement for the countries willing to adopt the euro was extremely high. “We need a good policy and a lot of luck to introduce the euro according to the planned schedule”, said Mr Kuodis. He also added that “a lot will depend on the development of oil prices”.
“There are no economic reasons for Lithuania to delay the adoption of the euro. A national currency is a luxury for a small country,” he said.
When acceding to the European Union, Lithuania assumed the obligation to adopt the euro in the future. The Bank of Lithuania considers 1 January 2007 as the most acceptable date.