Abstract
As a member of the European Union (EU), Romania is required to adopt the European single currency once it fulfils all the convergence criteria. As of June 2017, the national currency has not yet joined the preparatory two-year phase (the Exchange Rate Mechanism – ERM) necessary for the adoption of the euro and a certain target date has not been established. Over the years, different target dates have been officially set and communicated to the public, only to be later deemed unrealistic and postponed. The aim of this study is to present the state of the debate regarding the adoption of the euro and to describe how the main arguments have developed in recent years. To this end, academic studies both by Romanian and foreign specialists that treat the issue of euro adoption by Romania are reviewed and analyzed. Also, a number of recent typical popular press articles on this subject are presented and investigated. In addition, public positions recently taken by important political players and appointed officials such as the ones in the Central Bank are discussed and the core arguments found in these discourses are highlighted. Insights from the political discourse analysis body of literature are used to decipher the policy-related meaning of the text and context that accompany public declarations of some key political actors. The main storylines that can be found in this literature are identified and analyzed in terms of economic and political reasoning as well as rhetoric.
Highlights
Romania has been a member of the European Union (EU) since January 2007
As of June 2017, Romania's intentions related to the adoption of the European single currency remain unclear
The most recent convergence program issued by the government (April 2016) does not provide a timetable for adoption, it affirms the commitments of the Romanian authorities to eventually join the euro zone
Summary
Romania has been a member of the European Union (EU) since January 2007. As is the case with any member of the EU, Romania is required to adopt the European single currency once it fulfills a set of preestablished criteria. Different target dates have been officially set and communicated to the public, only to be later deemed unrealistic and postponed. The year 2010 has been the first official target for adoption but was http://ijasos.ocerintjournals.org 450. Economists criticized the setting of an unrealistic target, arguing that this could have promoted loans denominated in euro, exposing the public to foreign exchange risk. The Romanian public has constantly been among the most enthusiastic supporters of euro adoption. Sixtyfour percent of citizens favor the introduction of the euro as a single currency, the greatest percentage in the seven newer countries members of the EU (EC 2016). Since the average per-capita GDP (expressed as the purchasing power standards) represented around 55 percent compared to EU-28in 2015 (which is a significant increase from 52 percent in 2010), the Romanian economy has a long way until it becomes comparable to euro zone economies
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