The Graphic Truth: The 20-year euro vs. US dollar race

On Tuesday, the US dollar reached parity with the euro for the first time in 20 years. The euro's recent slump has a lot to do with high energy prices, fears of a looming EU-wide recession, and the European Central Bank dragging its feet on raising interest rates to tame inflation. Over the past two decades, though, 1 euro has consistently been worth more than 1 dollar because ... that's what the forex market decided, regardless of the strength comparison between the two economies. We take a look at how the euro has performed against the dollar since the EU launched the (physical) single currency on Jan. 1, 2002.