European Central Bank (ECB) chief Jean-Claude Trichet repeated Wednesday his insistence that European Union nations wanting to sign up to convert to the euro needed to meet the strict fiscal targets for joining the common currency, according to dpa. He spoke at a press briefing after a meeting of the ECB's governing council in Frankfurt, where he said any country wanting to become a member of the eurozone, had to ensure their finances were in line with the provisions of the Maastricht Treaty on European Union. Euro candidate nations first needed to ensure that "convergence as measured by the treaty was met and on a sustainable basis," he said. This includes meeting a tough budget deficit target of 3.0 per cent of gross domestic product. Of the 27 EU member states, only 13 have adopted the euro as a common currency. On the issue of Romania's prospects for joining the euro, Trichet said that while the nation has taken considerable strides in knocking its public finances into shape, it still "has a lot of homework to do," Trichet said. He said Bucharest needed to step up moves for greater liberalization of the nation's markets and structural reforms. Romania joined Bulgaria in becoming the EU's 26th and 27th members at the start of the year. Likewise, Trichet noted, Bulgaria needed to take action to address the its large current account deficit before it could consider starting the difficult journey to euro membership and to joining the European monetary grid, which acts as an antechamber for eurozone candidates. "It is good to enter when you are as fit and proper as possible," Trichet said.
