On the road to European Union : Germany

The common internal market of the then twelve EC states was launched at the beginning of 1993. This market united 345 million Europeans to form the economic area with the greatest purchasing power on earth. With the exception of Switzerland, the states of the European Free Trade Association EFTA (Austria, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland and Liechtenstein) and the European Community formed the European Economic Area. The first stage for achieving monetary union began in mid-1990.

During this period capital transfers among EC states were liberalized, and coordination of economic policy between the partners as well as cooperation between their central banks were intensified, iince the beginning of the second stage on 1 January 1994, the European Monetary Institute (EMI) has been Preparing the establishment of a European Central Bank which will be headquartered in Frankfurt am Wain. The decision on irrevocably entering the third stage - the final stage of monetary union - will be taken in the spring of 1998. A high degree of monetary stability and budgetary discipline is a precondition for the planned creation of complete economic and monetary union.