A rejection of the Nice Treaty by the Irish electorate should not adversely affect the Irish economy but may undermine confidence in the euro according to economists.
Economists said a "no" vote could be a blow to the euro as markets have been looking for a stronger European Union, which is partially provided for in the Nice Treaty. This would also lead to tighter control over the common currency.
"The euro has lacked a strong centre, and no one ever really knows who controls it," said Mr Aziz McMahon, treasury economist for Ulster Bank in Dublin.
In the short term a no vote could lead to some knee-jerk selling of the single currency as this would again emphasise the lack of coherence within the euro zone according to Dr Dan McLaughlin, chief economist at Bank of Ireland Group Treasury.
The euro is trading down against the dollar today but this is due to the landslide Labour victory in Britain rather than the situation in Ireland.
The ISEQ index of Irish leading shares also showed little negative reaction to the likelihood of a vistory for the no camp.At 2 a.m. the ISEQ was 8 points ahead at 6,381.57.
Dr McLaughlin told ireland.com that Ireland was unlikely to face any penalties for the rejection of the treaty and speculation that some form of punitive action was "patently ridiculous".