At the international level, the euro has become the second most widely used currency as a result of the overall weight of the euro area economy in the world and the legacy of the national currencies which were replaced by the euro. Looking at official international uses, the euro is second only to the US dollar among the world's official reserve currencies.
The gap between the two currencies, however, is wide. According to the latest available data, the euro accounted for around 13% of the world's official foreign currency holdings at the end of 1999, compared with a US dollar share of around 70%.