Big Al: euro catching up to dollar
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070917/germany_greenspan_euro.html?.v=1
Greenspan: Euro Gains As Reserve Choice
Monday September 17, 8:07 am ET
Report: Former Fed Boss Says Euro Could Replace U.S. Dollar As
Favored Reserve Currency
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Alan
Greenspan said it is possible that the euro could replace the U.S.
dollar as the reserve currency of choice.
According to an advance copy of an interview to be published in
Thursday’s edition of the German magazine Stern, Greenspan said that
the dollar is still slightly ahead in its use as a reserve currency,
but added that “it doesn’t have all that much of an advantage” anymore.
The euro has been soaring against the U.S. currency in recent weeks,
hitting all-time high of $1.3927 last week as the dollar has fallen
on turbulent market conditions stemming from the ongoing U.S.
subprime crisis. The Fed meets this week and is expected to lower its
benchmark interest rate from the current 5.25 percent.
Greenspan said that at the end of 2006, some 25 percent of all
currency reserves held by central banks were held in euros, compared
to 66 percent for the U.S. dollar.
In terms of being used as a payment for cross-border transactions,
the euro is trailing the dollar only slightly with 39 percent to 43
percent.
Greenspan said the European Central Bank has become “a serious factor
in the global economy.”
He said the increased usage of the euro as a reserve currency has led
to a lowering of interest rates in the euro zone, which has “without
any doubt contributed to the current economic growth.”