Exchange rates

The Eurostat data on exchange rates cover four main areas:

• Bilateral exchange rates between currencies. Bilateral exchange rates concern a pair of currencies. There are three different sets of data:
  
  
  • In relation to the euro (or the ECU before 1999) – i.e. in the form '1 euro/ECU = … units of the other currency'
  • Historical data – the bilateral exchange rates of the former national currencies of the euro area countries (Belgian Franc, Deutsche Mark, etc.) against the euro/ECU
  • Factors devised to help users in converting national time series of euro area countries expressed in euro ('euro fixed') into 'ECU/euro' and vice versa.
  
  
• Fluctuations in the exchange rate mechanism (ERM and ERM II) of the EU. There are two different sets of data:
  
  
  • ERM (before 1999)
  • ERMII (after 1999)
  
  
• Effective exchange rate indices. These data can be used as competitiveness indicators. There are two different sets:
  
  
  • Nominal effective exchange rates (NEER)
  • Real effective exchange rates (REER)
  
  
• Former euro area national currencies exchange rates. These data are exchange rates and indices for the currencies which have joined the euro area since 1999.