ABSTRACT
This chapter examines of the economics of the European Union. After World War II, Europeans were determined to create political and economic structures so as to prevent another war, such as those in 1914–1918 and 1939–1945 – two catastrophic wars that took place in a span of just 31 years. The people of Western Europe were enjoying unprecedented prosperity, and NATO was providing security. The idea of a uniform currency was under discussion, but evidently the time was not right for this step. The adoption of the European common currency, the euro, began with the Maastricht Treaty of 1992. The euro was established in 1999 when Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain joined.
