Roep om maatregelen tegen hoge koers Euro neemt toe (en)
Days before an EU leaders economic summit and following a decision by the European Central Bank (ECB) to avoid interest rate cuts, calls for measures to tackle the rising strength of the euro are intensifying.
Ernest-Antoine Seillière, president of BusinessEurope, a pan-European business association, told reporters on Thursday (6 March) that the euro "will not survive in the long run in the absence of some kind of political support, by which we mean the eurogroup."
The eurogroup gathers together finance ministers of the 15 member states of the single currency area. They meet about once a month usually on the eve of the full ministerial sessions of finance chiefs.
Earlier this week, the eurogroup voiced "concerns" over the record strength of the euro but refrained from commenting on the monetary policy of the ECB instead praising statements by the US authorities favouring a strong dollar.
The current debate is held against the backdrop of the record level of the euro against the US dollar, which is increasingly harming EU exports.
But despite the looming pressure, the ECB kept interest rates unchanged at its meeting on Thursday, citing inflation concerns as a reason for abstaining from rate cuts amid forecasts for economic slowdown in the eurozone.
"We believe that silence on the euro strength confronted with the weakness of other currencies is something that is not acceptable for business," said the EuropeBusiness president, adding "We need this problem to be tackled at a higher political level."
Mr Seillière argued that the eurogroup chief - currently the Luxembourg leader Jean-Claude Juncker - should have more clout in international institutions like the Group of Seven, where joint exchange rate policy is discussed.
Europe's trade unions have instead criticised the ECB's policy, urging the Frankfurt bank to "recognise at last that the balance of risks has shifted and that the threat to growth is now so serious that an urgent cut in interest rates is required."
"The euro's continuing appreciation is becoming alarming," stated the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), representing 82 trade union organisations in 36 countries.