New Currency Ties Europe Together.

• Author: Andrews, Edmund L.
• Position: Introduction of the euro - Brief Article

BRUSSELS, Jan. 1--Finance ministers from 11 countries celebrated New Year's Eve last night by launching the euro as Europe's new single currency, an effort first conceived in the 1950s to unify Europe and prevent another world war.

After years of preparation, the euro will begin trading Monday and will be worth about $1.17.

"We stand at the dawn of a new era in the integration of Europe," says Rudolf Edlinger, Austria's finance minister.

Euro notes and coins will not circulate until January 1, 2002, but banks and...