27th November 2001

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Three quarters of Northern Ireland’s businesses have made no preparations for the introduction of the euro in just over a month’s time, a survey carried out by the University of Ulster has discovered.

The level of preparation among firms which do business with other EU countries is equally low, with only 32% saying that they have any general strategy in place to cope with the impact of the single currency.

The survey covered 404 firms ranging from micro businesses to large operations and covered a broad spectrum of activity from manufacturing, through retail and wholesale to hospitality, tourism and agriculture.

Only one third of those questioned knew that the new euro notes and coins will be introduced in January - with 7% believing the single currency will become operational from 2003.

The survey discovered that only 96 firms out of the 404 had a strategy in place. Some 65% of them were prepared to trade in euros if suppliers or customers asked them; 63% had an arrangement made with their bank or had already opened a euro account; 56% stated that they were prepared to invoice in euros or could do so quickly; 49% were in the process of converting or changing their price structure and 47% stated that they deal in multi-currency accounts already.

Three hundred firms gave their reasons for failing to prepare for the euro. Almost four in ten said they believed that the single currency will have little or no effect on them with a third saying they are concentrating their efforts on the domestic market.

Another third said they believe the euro will have little impact on them because they are so small and a further 27% were adopting a wait-and-see approach. Astonishingly more than a quarter of respondents admitted they had not even thought about the new currency.

A total of 96 firms said they had sought advice about the euro, most of them from their bank or accountants. Only a quarter of the total number of firms surveyed had seen a leaflet produced on the effects of the euro.

Asked what should be done to help firms prepare for the euro, responses ranged from the sceptical: "Why should NI businesses have to prepare? The countries that are changing their currencies should be the ones to prepare" through those who felt Government should provide more information to those who felt "we need grants to prepare".

The survey was conducted by Michael Smyth of the School of Economics and Politics and Patrick Ibbotson of the School of Business, Retail and Financial Services for the Northern Ireland Euro Preparations Forum.

The authors said: "There does appear to be an ongoing need for timely, relevant information about the euro for small businesses. While banks and other sources of information have been cited as useful, they are not being accessed by a majority of SMEs.

"It could be argued that what is needed from here onwards is a more intense information and awareness campaign, now that general awareness of the introduction of the euro has heightened".

For further information, please contact:

Press Office Department of Communication and Development
Telephone: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk