29.12.73 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoL361/11
DECISION No3542/73/ECSCOFTHECOMMISSION
of19December 1973
ontheconversionratesforcurrenciesexpressedinunitsofaccountforcertain
purposesoftheTreatyestablishingtheECSC
THECOMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN
COMMUNITIES ,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishingtheEuropean
CoalandSteelCommunity ,andinparticularArticle
50thereof:exchangemarketofthecurrenciescoveredbythe
precedingsubparagraph ,wheresuchcurrencyis
thecurrencyofathirdcountry.TheCommission
shallamendtherateifitfindsthatthedifference
betweentherateaslastfixedandasnewlycalcu­
latedexceedsone-halfoftheCommunitymargin
offluctuation .
3.Thespotratestobeusedforthepurposesof
Article1(2)shallbe:HavingregardtoDecisionNo3541/73/ECSCofthe
Commission of19December1973onthedefinition
oftheunitofaccounttobeusedinDecisions,Recom­
mendations ,OpinionsandCommuniques forthe
purposesoftheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanCoal
andSteelCommunity ;
WhereasconversionofthecurrenciesoftheMember
Statesintounitsofaccountforthepurposesofthe
TreatyestablishingtheECSCshouldbebasedas
closelyaspossibleuponeconomicrealities;
AfterconsultingtheCouncil,
HASADOPTED THISDECISION :(a)fortheBelgianFrancandtheLuxembourg
Franc:theaverageofficialratesquotedoneach
businessdayontheBrusselsexchange;
(b)fortheDeutscheMark:theaverageofficial
ratesquotedoneachbusinessdayontheFrank­
furtexchange;
(c)fortheFrenchFranc:theaverageofficial
quotedratesoneachbusinessdayontheParis
exchange;
(d)fortheItalianLira:theaverageoftheaverage
officialratesquotedoneachbusinessdayon
theRomeandMilanexchanges ;
(e)fortheDutchGuilder:theaverageofficialrates
quotedoneachbusinessdayonthe
Amsterdamexchange;
(f)fortheUnitedKingdomPoundandtheIrish
Pound:theaverageratesoneachbusinessday
atmiddayontheexchangemarketsofthe
MemberStatesconcerned ;
(g)fortheDanishKroner;theaverageofficial
ratesquotedatmiddayatthemeetingpresided
overatCopenhagenoneachbusinessdayby
theNationalBankofDenmark;
(h)forothercurrencies :theexchangeratesonthe
exchangemarketsoftheMemberStatesasindi­
catedunder(a)to(g)above.Article1
Conversionofcurrenciesintounitsofaccountusedin
Decisions,Recommendations ,OpinionsandCommu­
niquesforthepurposesoftheTreatyestablishingthe
EuropeanCoalandSteelCommunityshallbecarried
outasfollows:
1.Inthecaseofcurrenciesforwhichtheratesare
withintheCommunitymarginoffluctuation ,by
usingtheofficialexchangerate(parityorcentral
rate,asthecasemaybe)rulingonthelastbusiness
dayofthereferenceperioddefinedbyArticle3
below;
Article22.Inthecaseofanyothercurrency,byusingarate
fixedbytheCommission onthebasisofthe
averageoftheratesforallthecurrenciescovered
bytheprecedingsubparagraph againstthe
currencyconcernedrulingduringthereference
perioddefinedbyArticle3belowontheexchange
marketofthecurrencyconcerned,wheresuch
currencyisaCommunitycurrencyor,ontheTheexchangeratesdeterminedinaccordancewith
Article1shallbeapplicableduringperiodsofsix
calendarmonths.

NoL361/12 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 29.12.73
Article3 regardingaids,exceptforDecisionNo73/287/
ECSCof25July1973oncokingcoalandcoke
intendedfortheCommunitysteelindustry.In
thesecasesonlytheamountexpressedinunitsof
accountmaybealtered.ThereferenceperiodsreferredtoinArticle1shallbe:
—fordrawinguptheECSCbalancesheets,thedate
ofsuchbalancesheetor,whereappropriate,the
lastbusinessdayprecedingsuchdate,
—forotheroperations,thelastmonthbutonebefore
theperiodofsixcalendarmonthstowhichsuch
operationsrelate.Article5
TheCommissionshallnotifyinterestedpartiesofthe
conversion ratesfixedinaccordance withthe
precedingArticles.Article4
ThisDecision : Article6
—shallnotapplyinrespectoftheadministration
budgetoftheECSC;
—shallnotapplyinareaswherespecificmeasures
havebeenadoptedasregardsconversionrates,
particularlythemeasuresforbalancingimportsof
scrapandmaterialtreatedassuch,coveredby
DecisionNo21/60/ECSCof20July1960;
—cannotalterthevalueinnationalcurrenciesof
undertakings pursuanttoDecisionstakenConversionscarriedoutinaccordancewithArticles1,
2and3shallbeused:
—fordrawinguptheECSCbalancesheetsfrom31
December1973to31December1974;
—forcalculatingtheaveragevaluesonwhichthe
leviesshallbeassessedfortheyear1974;
—forotheroperationsrelatingtothefinancialyear
1974.
ThisDecisionshallbebindinginitsentiretyanddirectlyapplicableinallMember
States.
DoneatBrussels,19December1973.
FortheCommission
ThePresident
Francois-Xavier ORTOLI