The number of counterfeit euro coins removed from circulation rose by 63 percent in 2006 on the previous year, the European Commission (EC) said on Friday.

The EU executive said the increase reflected stronger efforts by EU member states to fight counterfeiting rather than a surge in the actual production of fake coins.

Nearly 164,000 counterfeit euro coins were removed from circulation, 86 percent of which were two-euro coins, the EU executive said, adding that another 14,000 fake coins were seized by law enforcement agencies before entering circulation.

In total, 550,000 counterfeit coins have been found and 12 illegal mints have been discovered since the introduction of the euro in 2002, it said.

The EC said that the rise in counterfeits should not be a significant cause of concern for the public, as the overall number is small by historical standards and there are 69 billion genuine euro coins in circulation.

The counterfeit coins, while increasingly sophisticated, should generally be rejected by properly adjusted vending and other coin-operated machines, the EC said.

Source: Xinhua