Call for euro referendum

Credit Management, Apr 2008

Nearly two thirds of UK exporters (63%) have backed calls for a referendum on the UK joining the single currency, according to a major new survey of exporters sponsored by Coface, a leading provider of credit management services, carried out by the Credit Management Research Centre, at Leeds University Business School. In the event of a referendum taking place, 55% of exporters would vote in favour of the euro, an increase of 12% compared with 2006.

The Coface Export Survey, a survey of UK exporters previously carried out in 2002 and 2006, also reveals that of those in favour of the euro, the biggest motivation is to see more certainty surrounding exchange rates (44%). Greater price transparency was an important factor for 28%, and 26% of those voting for the euro cited lower transactional costs as a key factor. Service firms are more likely to vote in favour of joining the euro (62%), compared with manufacturing firms (51%).