This book provides a much-needed accessible and non-technical account of a highly topical issue - European Monetary Union. It is a coherent and authoritative statement of the view of the Commission of the European Communities by its chief economist. The book has already been written about in the Financial Times, and it should attract much media attention on publication.

Executive Summary; A: Synthesis and Economic Principles: Synthesis; The Economics of EMU; B: The Main Benefits and Costs: Efficiency Gains; Benefits of Stable Prices; Implications for Public Finance; Adjusting without the Nominal Exchange Rate; External Dimensions; C: The Impact Through Time and Space: Transitional Issues; Spatial Aspects; National Perspectives on the Costs and Benefits of EMU; Annexes: Exchange Transaction Costs; Germany and the Netherlands: the Case of a de facto Monetary Union; European and German Economic and Monetary Union: a Comparison; Shocks and Adjustment in EMU: Simulations with the Quest Model; Exchange Rate Regimes in the EC: Simulations with the Multimod Model

`An excellent evaluation of the prospects of EMU.' M.J. Riley, Thames Polytechnic 'a thorough economic appraisal by the Commission of the likely economic effects - costs as well as benefits - of the move to EMU ... Even after the Maastricht Summit, this analysis, which is not targeted exclusively at economists, loses none of its interest.' Europe, No. 5680, 2/3 March 1992 'well-organized book ... this book will be a valuable source of ideas and information to readers on both sides of what could be one of the most important arguments on the 1990s agenda for specialists in international economics and politics' G.T. Potter, emeritus, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Choice, Oct '92 `Excellent study of the costs and benefits of monetary unification.' Nigel Grimwade, South Bank University `Useful for its analysis of monetary union. No equivalent at this level to the best of my knowledge.' C. McPherson, Humberside University