Two thirds of Spaniards against euro

13 January 2004

MADRID – More than two-thirds of Spaniards think the euro was a bad idea because it has pushed prices up, a survey found Tuesday.

House prices alone were said to have gone up by 69 percent in Spain since the introduction of the euro in January 2002.

But more than half of those questioned said their spending habits had not changed since the currency was brought in.

The study is based on a poll of more than 5,000 people questioned in Spain, France, Italy, Belgium, the UK, Germany and Russia.

Apart from Spain, in three other countries at least more than half of those questioned were unhappy with the euro.

They were Italy (78 percent against), Germany (70 percent), and Portugal (54 percent).

In France, 49 percent said the new currency produced more disadvantages, but the same number claimed it had also brought advantages.

But in Belgium, 63 percent of those canvassed said the euro was a good thing.

In the eight countries which analysts studied, just under half (48 percent) said their feeling about the European Union was “worry” while only 42 percent said they felt “trust”.

Nearly half (49 percent) of Spaniards were optimistic in the development of the EU.

The British were the most concerned about the future of the EU, with 64 percent saying it “worried” them.

Figures for those who said they were “concerned” about the EU varied; Germany (64 percent)France (59 percent) Portugal (54 percent) Russia (49 percent).

Meanwhile, the same survey found Spaniards are optmistic in the economic situation in their country.

They believe they live well and they gave the country a rating of six out of ten.

The poll, called ‘The Observation of Distribution’, was carried out by analysts from the Cetelem Bank and looked at consumer habits for 2003.

According to the survey, 76 percent of Spaniards think that the economic situation will improve in 2004.

The Belgians and British are also optimistic about the economic future.

But the Italians and French showed “moderation” and the Portuguese, Russians and Germans considered that in their own countries there was a “critical situation”.

But the poll showed that in each sector of the Spanish economy, the number of Spaniards who planned serious purchases in 2004 was lower than the European average.

House-buying was the only section of the Spanish economy which matched the European average. Ten percent of those questioned planned to buy a house.

Salvador Maldonado, director of the study, said the level of consumption in Spain “is evolving to above the European average”, even though the percentage is lower at the present.

He explained that in Europe house buying was less developed than in Spain.

[Copyright EFE with Expatica]

Subject: Spanish news