WRITTEN QUESTION E-3820/02 by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Movement of the euro against other currencies.
Date: 2003-01-09
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: euro, exchange policy, exchange rate, foreign currency, international currency, monetary relations, money market

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 70 E/25

The case cited by the Honourable Member concerns Bulgaria and the Commission is not aware that this is
a problem experienced across all candidate countries. As concerns Bulgaria, the Commission clearly states
in the 2002 Regular Report that police corruption is perceived to be a problem and that cases of bribery
in the traffic and border police have been raised by Union citizens driving in and through Bulgaria.
Following the Commission’s request
the Union/Bulgaria
Association Committee, the issue will continue to be discussed in the framework of both the Europe
Agreement and the negotiations. Bulgaria’s progress in this area will be continuously monitored until the
date of accession.

for improvements at

the last meeting of

The fight against corruption is considered to be a priority for PHARE assistance in Bulgaria and four anti-
corruption projects were approved in 2002. One of these exclusively covers corruption within the police
force.

Further to the complaints from Union citizens received by the Commission, the Commission has been
presented with detailed information on apparent corruption-related cases which closely resemble the cases
reported by ANWB, and ‘Stichting Inspraakorgaan Turken’ in the Netherlands. The Commission will invite
Bulgaria to take appropriate measures in order to prevent incidents of the specific character described in
the complaints and to inform the Commission of the results of its actions. The Commission will inform
the Honourable Member of the reply.

(2004/C 70 E/027)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3820/02

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

Subject: Movement of the euro against other currencies

(9 January 2003)

How closely has the Commission studied the movement of the euro against other major currencies on the
world market?

Which currency has fluctuated most, the euro or the Swedish krona, against each of the three currencies,
the US dollar, the Japanese yen and the pound sterling, since 1 January 1999?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2003)

The Commission is in charge of the multilateral surveillance and for this purpose the Commission
monitors economic and financial developments in each Member State and in the Community as well.
In this context the Commission monitors the euro’s movements against other currencies and its impact on
the euro area economy.

The foreign exchange rate is a relative price. Variations in the exchange rate between two countries can
occur either by developments in the home country, or by developments in the foreign country.
The experience with floating exchange rate regimes shows that exchange rate movements can be large.
Standard measures of dispersion can be calculated as an indication of a currency’s variation against other
factors that are not always
currencies, bearing in mind that currency variations depend on several
anchored in changes in relative fundamental factors. If a change in a currency pair is the result of a change
in relative fundamental factors, such a currency movement may be warranted. Conversely, if a change in a
currency pair cannot be attributed to any change in relative fundamental factors, that movement could be
considered unwarranted. Hence, exchange rate variation as such has little informative value on its own; the
factors behind an exchange rate move must also be considered.

The table below displays some standard measures of dispersion, such as the standard deviation and
variance, over the period 1 January 1999 to 19 December 2002. According to these measures, the relation
between the Swedish krona and the US dollar (USD) have displayed a greater dispersion than the relation

C 70 E/26

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

20.3.2004

between the EUR and the USD. The same is true for the relation between the Swedish krona (SEK) and the
Pound Sterling (GBP). The relation between the Swedish krona and the Japanese Yen (JPY) have displayed a
somewhat smaller dispersion than the relation between the euro and the Japanese Yen.

EUR/USD

SEK/USD

EUR/JPY

SEK/JPY

EUR/GBP

SEK/GBP

EUR/SEK

STDEV (1)

AVEDEV (2)

6,6

5,6

8,2

7,2

7,6

6,3

7,3

5,7

3,3

2,5

4,6

3,9

3,8

3,2

DEVSQ (3)

45 484,0

70 062,0

60 468,0

54 481,0

11 036,0

22 061,0

15 155,0

VAR (4)

44,0

67,8

58,5

52,7

10,7

21,3

14,7

Standard deviation.

(1)
(2) Average of the absolute deviations of data points from their mean.
(3)
Sum of squares of deviations of data points from their mean.
(4) Variance.

(2004/C 70 E/028)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3856/02

by Eija-Riitta Korhola (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(6 January 2003)

Subject: Retail prices of fair-trade products

Fair trade accounts for a relatively large share of consumption in Europe. In 1997 the turnover of fair-
trade products was estimated at EUR 200-250 million. 11 % of European consumers buy such products,
and surveys have revealed that there is very substantial demand for them.

The EU has already adopted fair-trade initiatives, and NGOs and organisations which award fair-trade
status also do their bit. Projects are also funded in developing countries. In the field of legislation, the EU
has implemented fair-trade principles using numerous instruments, for example measures under the EU’s
Generalised System of Tariff Preferences. Despite all these measures, fair-trade products still cost far more
than normal products, at least in Finland.

How much support is provided for fair-trade products?

Does the Commission know how the retail prices of fair-trade products currently compare with those of
normal products, and what are the biggest cost items which contribute to the formation of the retail prices
of fair-trade products?

To what extent can national authorities influence these prices?

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(24 January 2003)

The increased attention on the part of the public towards fair trade products is the result, among other
reasons, of the various awareness raising campaigns that have been organised at the national level, that the
Community has co-financed on several occasions. Such co-financing of private initiatives is part of the
limited financial support for activities relating to fair trade that the Commission has already provided to
non-governmental organisations (NGOs) within the Union and to producer groups in developing countries.
Other forms of support may exist at the national level, but the Commission does not monitor the total
amount of such forms of support.

The Commission has never carried out any detailed study on the price-structure for fair trade products, as
these are commercial decisions taken within the context of the relevant organisations and may, indeed,
differ widely depending on the product and the source in question. It is, however, widely accepted that