As Bulgaria begins the new year by bidding farewell to the Lev, a new Eurobarometer study found that almost 80% of respondents across the euro area believe the euro is a good thing for the EU.
Support for the currency is the highest in Finland (91%), Lithuania (85%), Slovenia (85%) and Slovakia (85%).
On the other hand, only 38% in Croatia claim the euro is good for their country, a figure that has dropped six percentage points since 2024.
Support has also decreased significantly in Estonia and Belgium, a fall of 6 and 5 percentage points, respectively.
Most respondents in Croatia say that the introduction of the euro has negatively impacted prices during the transition period.
In Croatia, 59% of respondents still convert prices from euros into Croatian kuna when making purchases.
Despite a majority of euro-area citizens saying the euro helps them to feel European, only 46% of Croatians agree with this statement.
Younger respondents are more likely to believe that the euro is a good thing for their country and for the EU.
Those aged between 15 and 24 (76%) are the most likely to say that having the euro is good for their country, while those aged between 25 and 39 (71%), from 40 to 54 (69%), or over 55 (69%) are less likely to hold this view.
What is the impact of the euro on prices?
Around 79% of the EU pollsters claim the euro has made doing business in different EU countries easier — a view strongly held in Slovenia, Belgium, and France.
About eight in ten respondents also believe the euro has made it easier to compare prices and shop in different countries.
Almost half of EU respondents (48%) think the euro has reduced banking charges when travelling in different EU countries, while 32% believe the currency has had no impact on such charges.
More than half of respondents in the euro area also say that the euro has made travelling easier and less costly.
However, not all coins are welcome.
Around six in ten respondents across the euro area are in favour of abolishing 1- and 2-euro cent coins.
Currently, various forms of national legislation enforce or encourage the rounding of euro coins to five cents — particularly the final purchase total in shops and supermarkets. This is the case in Belgium, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Slovakia.
Bulgaria is the EU’s poorest member state, and while many hope joining the euro will boost the economy, concerns persist over inflation and political instability.
