Belgian franc

And the citizens of Luxembourg will no longer have to juggle four legal currencies - their own franc, the German mark, and French and Belgian francs.

When budgets were made before the start of 1999, the firm expected to earn 350 million French francs, 200 million German marks and 1 billion Belgian francs. Its anticipated income, translated to U.S.

There was some local resistance to the British, who were criticised for taking undue advantage of the weak Belgian franc, for being too informal in dress and manners, and for being too ugly; but this negative impression was insufficiently widespread to be a deterrent.

Right now it will be an advantage because the dollar is at a high value compared to the euro and the Belgian franc."

Capital: Brussels Official Language(s): Flemish, French, German Currency: Belgian Franc Population: 9,921,910 Average Income: US$24,512 per household Direct Mail: 87 pieces per person/year

CURRENCY: The Belgian franc is 59.23 to the pounds 1.

Beyond that, as a result of the depreciation of the Belgian franc in effective terms, the continuing good cost-price performance of domestic firms relative to foreign competitors, and the projected acceleration of the expansion in neighbouring countries, exports are expected to strengthen further and the contribution of the foreign balance to growth should remain substantial.

"We have a lot of people coming into the shop from outside Brussels, so we were already accepting a lot of other money besides the Belgian franc."

Bank Van Breda decided to abolish, from June 1, the 100 Belgian Franc (Euro 2.50) minimum charge for all customers for all transactions.

Inflation fell in early 1997 - to 1.3 per cent (year-on-year) in April despite somewhat higher import prices resulting from the depreciation of the Belgian franc in effective terms.

Thomas Cook says it will change Austrian schilling, Belgian franc, Finnish mark, French franc, German deutschmark, Greek drachma, Irish punt, Italian lira, Luxembourg franc, Dutch guilder, Portuguese escudo and Spanish peseta notes into sterling between now and the end of February 2002.

Beyond that, the expected upturn in neighbouring countries should provide further support to exports, especially since Belgian firms may regain some international competitiveness due to the recent decline of the Belgian franc in effective terms and continuing wage moderation as a result of the new law on employment and competitiveness.(1)

People are decrying the state of the pound, but the fact is that we do sell through Belgium and if they can do it with a 30 per cent swing in the pound against the Belgian franc, there is no reason why we should not sell in other European countries."

The Belgian franc has remained slightly above its central rate vis-a-vis the Deutschemark, and the Belgian National Bank has continued to lower short-term interest rates generally in tandem with the Bundesbank.

Given the wage freeze, the amount of slack in the economy, and the recent appreciation of the Belgian franc in effective terms, serious inflation pressures seem unlikely.