"Countries outside the euro are not progressing towards membership" - ECB publishes report: Still far from meeting criteria
European Union countries outside the euro have made little or no progress on convergence in recent years and even Hungary, the country most actively discussing membership, does not meet any of the key criteria, a European Central Bank report showed.
All EU members except Denmark have a legal requirement to adopt the common currency, but failure to do so is not penalized, so only a few are actively working to join, while most others prefer to retain the influence offered by an independent monetary policy.
“Progress towards compliance with the convergence criteria has been hampered by external shocks,” the ECB said in a biennial report, repeating a similar conclusion made two years ago and suggesting that progress has essentially stalled.
"Public finances have deteriorated in most countries since the 2024 Convergence Report, with debt-to-GDP ratios in some cases increasing significantly," the ECB said.
While Bulgaria joined the currency bloc at the beginning of the year, the five potential members - the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Sweden - all seem many years away from membership.
Hungary's new government promised to meet the key conditions, commonly known as the Maastricht criteria, by 2030, but the country is among the furthest behind.
It has the highest debt and interest rate among the five countries, while its budget deficit, inflation rate, and currency volatility are all outside the benchmarks.
In addition, its central bank law does not meet requirements and needs to improve the rule of law and fight corruption, the ECB report said.
“Further improving the quality of public institutions and ensuring that they are free from undue political interference, fighting corruption, implementing appropriate product market policies and safeguarding the rule of law are prerequisites for private-sector-led economic growth,” the ECB said of Hungary. The country also faces structural challenges related to ageing, as well as emerging skills mismatches in the labour market, the ECB added.
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