Slovakia welcomes € (05.01.2009)
On January 1, Slovakia welcomed not only 2009 – moreover the country joined the eurozone as its 16th member and as the first of the former satellites in Central Eastern Europe.
The European Commission as well as Slovak officials said that the switch from the Slovak crown to the new currency went smoothly. As a positive effect of the Euro adoption it is expected that the new currency could limit the impact of the global financial crisis on the country as confirmed by the president of the Institute for Public Affairs (IVO), Grigorij Mesežnikov, commenting to the Slovak News Agency TASR. The euro could thus in Slovakia act as a shield against the effects of the crisis - and in comparison to weak currencies in the CEE region - be a guarantor for a stable business climate for foreign investors.
