Efforts by our major trading partners also are under way, although in many cases they probably are not yet at so advanced a stage as in this country. In Europe, the need to reprogram computer systems to handle the conversion to the euro seems to have taken precedence over Y2K efforts, although there may be efficiencies in dealing with the two problems at once.
The financial difficulties of Japan and other Asian economies certainly have diverted attention and resources in those countries from the Y2K problem, increasing the risk of a Y2K shock from one or more of these countries. But, on the positive side, large multinational corporations are acutely aware of the Y2K problem, and their remediation efforts are independent of national boundaries.