Conversion Rates of the Euro

CIRCULAR LETTER Series of 1999

TO  : All Concerned

SUBJECT : Conversion Rates of the Euro

Further to Circular Letter dated January 7, 1999 on the "Euro as the Common Currency of Eleven Countries in the European Monetary Union (EMU)", please be informed that on December 31, 1998, the European Union's finance ministers approved the final conversion rates of the Euro against the currencies of the EMU member countries. The rates were based on the daily fixing of the European Currency Unit (ECU), an artificial unit of account covering a basket of currencies that will be replaced by the Euro on a one-for-one basis.

1. The following table details the irrevocable exchange rates which will be used to convert the 11 national currencies to the Euro effective January 1, 1999 up to June 30, 2002. These rates are fixed and shall remain unchanged. Each is expressed in units of the national currency per Euro.

National Currency

Currency  Ticker

Conversion Rate

German Mark

DEM

1.955830

Belgian Franc

BEF

40.339900

Luxembourg Franc

LUF

40.339900

Spanish Peseta

ESP

166.386000

French Franc

FRF

6.559570

Irish Punt

IEP

0.787564

Italian Lira

ITL

1936.270000

Austrian Schilling

ATS

13.760300

Dutch Guilder

NLG

2.203710

Portuguese Escudo

PTE

200.482000

Finnish Markka

FIM

5.945730

2. The following reference rates of the Euro against other non-EMU member currencies, the U.S. Dollar and the Japanese Yen were also announced on December 31, 1998. Each rate is also expressed in units of the national currency per Euro.

National Currency (non-EMU) Currency Exchange rate Ticker to the Euro

British Pound

GBP

0.705455

Danish Kroner

DKK

7.448780

Greek Drachma

GRD

329.689000

Swedish Krona

SEK

9.488030

U.S. Dollar

USD

1.166750

Japanese Yen

JPY

132.800000

The conversion rate of the Euro against all non-EMU currencies will subsequently be market-determined.

3. The Euro officially started trading on January 4, 1999. It opened at 1.1750 U.S. Dollars per Euro.

4. Likewise, effective 05 January 1999, the daily format of the BSP Reference Exchange Rate Bulletin has been revised to reflect the Euro equivalent of the various currencies appearing therein (see attachment for reference).

Please be guided accordingly.

FOR THE MONETARY BOARD

GABRIEL C. SINGSON Governor