This article examines the European Snake Monetary System (EMS), Giscard’s monetary plan, and Fourcade’s proposals to make the EMS more symmetrical. We also look at the challenges and advantages of the EMS. It is clear that the EMS has many advantages, and the future of Monetary Co-operation in Europe is bright.
EMS
While many people might not get to know it, the snake was a monetary union that took place in Europe. Its aim was to maintain stable exchange rates between the member countries and to encourage trade between the countries. It was not an asymmetrical system, though. For instance, when Spain and Italy joined the EMS in 1980, their currencies experienced wider fluctuations than those of the other members. In addition, the EMS’s parity grid was frequently realigned. The UK also joined in 1990, but left in 1992 due to substantial international capital flows.
The establishment of the EMS was based on the economic and political beliefs of the members. It also had a unique meeting of minds. Valery Giscard d’Estaing had an optimistic view of European integration and a concern for price stability, while Helmut Schmidt had a monetarist outlook and an aversion to US dominance.
European Snake Monetary System
The European Snake Monetary System (EMS) was a monetary union governed by a set of rules. The aim of the system was to establish stable exchange rates among its members and to promote trade within its membership. Compared with the original Snake, the EMS had a stable membership and a lower exchange rate variability.
After the Bretton Woods system was terminated in May 1972, many European countries began attempting to stabilize their currencies. The first attempt was called the “Snake in the Tunnel”, and it was implemented by members of the European Economic Community (EEC). This system lasted until 1979, and was characterized by its requirement for market intervention and a fixed range of exchange rates. The maximum divergence between EEC currencies was 2.25 percent.
The EMS was implemented by the member countries in a series of stages. The first stage involved free capital movements across Europe. The next stage saw the elimination of pegs with the ECU. The EMS changed the bandwidth of exchange rate volatility and ensured currency stability throughout Europe. The EMS was seen as an important step towards establishing the EU.
Giscard’s monetary plan
Giscard’s plan for monetary cooperation is based on the ideas of monetary and economic policy and the desire to strengthen European integration. However, his support for further monetary and economic integration is not purely strategic. Indeed, his support for further European integration has been too consistent for it to be strategic at all.
In 1974, French President George Pompidou passed away from cancer and was succeeded by Finance Minister Valery Giscard d’Estaing, who was later elevated to the presidency of the French Republic. Moreover, German Chancellor Willy Brandt resigned after a staff member was found to be a German Democratic Republic spy. This forced the resignation of Brandt, and Finance Minister Helmut Schmidt was appointed Chancellor. Then, Gerald Ford, the Vice President, stepped in to succeed Nixon as President.
Fourcade’s proposals to make EMS more symmetrical
The EMS was designed to provide symmetry and monetary stability for weak-currency countries with high inflation. As a result, the European Monetary System (EMS) has a symmetrical relationship to the value of its currency. Nevertheless, there’s been some controversy surrounding the EMS’s symmetry and asymmetrical relationship with other currencies.
The formation of the EMS is difficult to explain in hard structuralist terms. Accounts contemporaneous to the events record a multitude of construals. The Economist, for example, invoked Pirandello to explain the Schmidt initiative. However, the EMS was agreed upon by the Bremen Summit on July 7 1978. In addition, the Communiqué Annex of the Bremen Summit contained many strings and holes.
The proposals to make EMS more symmetrical tended to address two critical flaws. The first was the issue of the reference currency. If the ERM used nominal cross-rates, the weakest currencies would bear the burden of adjustment, thereby making the EMS unsymmetrical. However, if the ERM had a weighted basket of currencies, the burden would be more symmetrical.
Impact of snake bites on health systems
In the previous few years, an increasing number of studies have been conducted on the impact of snake bites on health systems. These studies have explored the expenditure associated with snake bite treatment and the cost-effectiveness of antivenom. In addition to the health costs associated with a single episode of snakebite, the financial impact of snakebites is even greater if a community also suffers losses in terms of livestock production.
While the immediate impact of snake bites is significant, the long-term effects have been less studied. The most common psychological conditions reported following a snakebite include depressive symptoms and post-traumatic stress disorder. However, some studies have also noted that snakebites can also result in non-specific somatic symptoms. These may be linked to socio-cultural beliefs that promote a “sick” role for snakebite victims.