A huge percentage of UK com-panies have done little if anything to prepare for the fact that nearly a third of them have customers who will be trading in euros next year.

Banking group HSBC estimates that 2.9 million of the UK's 3.7 million businesses have done nothing to prepare for the euro changeover which is now less than 25 working days away.

"Companies, particularly small businesses, are under the impression that it's just another currency, so we'll continue to operate as we've always done, unless the UK joins the eurozone," said Mark Medd, HSBC manager for Swindon.

On January 1 the national currencies of the eurozone countries, known as legacy currencies, will cease to exist other than in the form of banknotes and coins.

And by February 28 all the EMU countries are expected to have converted fully to the euro.

"Businesses should consider what this means for them," says Mr Medd.

"Firstly, small to medium enterprises within the eurozone may seek to do more business within the zone, to the detriment of external suppliers.

"This will happen because prices of similar goods in different eurozone countries will be simple to compare.

"It's becoming increasingly easy to find potential trading partners via the internet.

"Secondly, businesses within the eurozone will be more inclined to insist upon euro pricing from external suppliers."

The Eurozone currencies include: Austrian schillings, Belgian francs, Deutschmarks, Finnish markka, French francs, Greek drachma, Irish punts, Italian lire, Luxem-bourg francs, Dutch guilders, Portu-guese escudos and Spanish pesetas.