U.S.
Exporters May Gain
From
Switch to Euro
After
January 1
Ypsilanti, Michigan,
December 20--Doing business in
Europe? The transition to a
single currency, the Euro,
starting January 1 should
cause few headaches for U.S.
exporters and might even be
helpful, according to the
Commerce Department’s U.S.
Commercial Service.
One benefit is that U.S.
companies selling to multiple
European countries will find
it more efficient to deal in
one currency instead of 12.
Small and midsize firms will
see reduced exchange rate
risks as there will be no need
to cope with the volatility in
many different exchange rates.
Another benefit is
transparency in prices. Buyers
and sellers can more easily
compare prices of comparable
goods as well as transactional
costs such as transportation.
"Overall, U.S. firms
should benefit from the
conversion to the Euro,"
said Senior Commercial Officer
Eric Weaver in Rome. He said
there may be some challenges
getting used to the new
system, but these should be
"short-lived."
In general, the transition
to the Euro, which began
several years ago, has helped
individual countries get their
fiscal and monetary houses in
order. Economies have expanded
and so have imports. In
addition, since the majority
of smaller U.S. companies
export to one European market,
the embrace of the Euro may
make it easier to export to
additional countries, says
Ronald Soriano of the
Commercial Service in Paris.
Weaver and other Commerce
officers throughout Europe
caution that U.S. businesses
need to be capable of
conducting transactions in
both Euros and the soon-to-be
obsolete currencies during a
transitional period which is
scheduled to last through
February 2002. European Union
countries will implement their
individual plans for the
changeover during this time.
Transitional headaches in the
implementing companies could
be considerable as banks and
businesses put new computer
software and mindsets into
use.
Local companies have a
federal resource in Southern
Lower Michigan that can answer
questions about the Euro
switch. "We have the
tools and the expertise to
help you navigate through the
changing market conditions in
Europe," said Paul E.
Litton, the director of the
Ypsilanti U.S. Export
Assistance Center. The
Ypsilanti US Export Assistance
Center is part of the U.S.
Commercial Service's worldwide
which includes offices
throughout the European Union.
It is a joint venture with the
Eastern Michigan University
College of Business and the
Michigan Small Business
Development Center network.
The U.S. Commercial Service is
a Department of Commerce
agency that helps U.S.
companies, particularly small
and mid-sized companies,
succeed in global markets.
U.S. firms are likely to
find that European buyers will
want to use Euros in their
invoicing, bills of lading and
other documents. U.S.
exporters can prepare for the
change by having their price
lists and invoices in Euros.
In fact, European agents and
distributors may request this
shift and U.S. suppliers will
benefit by being ahead of the
curve, say Commerce Department
officials.
The 12 countries
implementing the Euro are
Austria, Belgium, Ireland,
Finland, France, Germany,
Italy, Greece, the
Netherlands, Luxembourg,
Portugal, and Spain.
Maintaining their own
currencies are the United
Kingdom, Sweden and Denmark.
U.S. exports to EU
countries have increased
steadily over the years
reaching nearly $165 billion
in 2000, up 266 percent from
1983. Small and midsize firms
are involved in a significant
amount of these exports. For
example, more than 20,000
small and midsize companies
exported goods worth $6.5
billion to Germany in 1997,
the last full year for which
there are data.
For export assistance or
more information on
international market
opportunities in European or
other markets, businesses
should call the U.S. Commerce
Department's U.S. Export
Assistance Center in Ypsilanti
at (734) 487-0259.
For more information on
market opportunities in
Europe, refer to www.BuyUSA.com.
For more information on the
Euro and/or the European
Market, refer to the following
Web sites:
| TOTAL |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
Percent
Change
2001 - 2002 |
|
In
1,000 Dollars
|
| Michigan
Exports TOTAL |
680,474,248 |
692,820,620 |
780,418,628 |
731,025,906 |
693,257,300 |
-5.2% |
Source: US International
Trade Commission
Date Updated: March 27, 2007
|
