(CNN) -- The launch of the euro has been hailed as a quantum leap forward in European integration and as a historic chance for economic success in a continent where unemployment and job creation are key concerns.

"We turn the page to a new chapter of European history which will be characterized by stability, economic growth and more employment," said Austrian Finance Minister Rudolf Edlinger, whose country holds the rotating European Union presidency, at the euro launch.

While nobody really knows the total impact of the euro on the some 290 million people in the 11 participating "euroland" nations, experts predict some of the following scenarios:

• Consumers will soon see dual price tags in stores: a product price in the national currency and the same price in euros. Comparing the euro prices will reveal price differences between, say, a product in Germany and the same one in Portugal. Experts say this discrepancy likely will cause prices to fall somewhat, while profit margins may shrink for companies.

That outcome would cause some small companies either to go under or look for partners so they can grow stronger and weather the competition. Joint ventures, mergers and takeovers are expected to increase because of the pressure of Europeanwide marketing and competition.

• Central banks, savers and investors around the world may begin to turn their backs on the U.S. dollar, choosing the euro instead (China and Iran, for instance, already have indicated such a preference). Also, Japan will now be the third-largest global economy; it was second before the euro launch.

• Until now, entrepreneurs in Europe have had great difficulty in raising capital. But with the euro, Europe is expected to beef up lending, for example in the bond market, to young and emerging companies, as the United States does. This should rejuvenate small and medium-sized businesses, helping them expand and creating new jobs.

• Experts widely agree that the financial and budgetary disciplines that allowed the 11 euro nations to launch a single currency must remain in place.