الرئيسية
The euro, rolled out as a cash currency with a string of promises
about easy travel, European unity and stable prices, has left
crisis-rattled consumers decidedly ambivalent a decade on.
On the
streets of Berlin, Madrid, and Bratislava, the view is similar: despite
its clear upsides, the transition to the euro hiked the cost of living
even as it introduced deep political and economic uncertainty in the
bloc.
The euro, the most tangible manifestation of European
integration in everyday life, has become a symbol of the debt crisis and
the economic downturn.
"Since we rolled out the euro in France, we gave up our purchasing power," fumes Viviane Vangic, 37, in the Paris city centre.
Eighty-five percent of Germans believe that the euro has pushed up prices, according to a recent survey.
And Maria Angeles in Madrid says that "when we went to the euro, what used to cost 100 pesetas now costs a euro" or 160 pesetas.
Although
the statistics do not bear out this impression, showing about
two-percent inflation each year over the last decade, the accusation of a
built-in price hike is widespread among those who remember their old
currency.
This is particularly true among the newcomers to the euro.
"All
the prices have gone up since we adopted the euro. It has always been
hard for pensioners to make ends meet," says Elena, a 72-year-old in
Bratislava, Slovakia, which adopted the euro in 2009.
"But now young families are also struggling to make a living."
Younger
Europeans, who are suffering from disproportionately high unemployment
in many countries, have little memory of their national currencies and
take the euro for granted.
"I don't even know to convert anymore. I count in euros," said Stephanie Jordan, a 23-year-old Parisian.
"I am committed to the euro -- since I've been spending money it's been in euros," said Ann Hillig, a 24-year-old in Berlin.
For her the mighty deutschmark, for which Germans profess their love in poll after poll, is now a distant memory.
Hillig
says she hopes that the euro has a bright future ahead of it and finds
it "exciting to flip over coins and say,'oh, this one comes from there
or there'," she said, referring to the national symbols from each of the
17 member states on the back of every euro coin.
Moving from one
country to another with the same bills and coins is generally seen as
one of the great strengths of the euro, eliminating the expense,
inconvenience and waste of converting currencies. But tough economic
times have diminished that advantage.
"You don't have to change
money when travelling but now I don't travel anymore because it's
expensive," says Rodny Kamil, 29, a fish seller in Bratislava.
"My
life has got more difficult since the euro adoption but not only the
currency, also the times have changed. With the euro, I have a feeling
that I can buy less for the same amount of money than I could a few
years ago. So in order to buy what I need, I have to work more."
His compatriot Jano Bosansky, a 50-year-old entrepreneur, is sceptical about the future of the eurozone.
about easy travel, European unity and stable prices, has left
crisis-rattled consumers decidedly ambivalent a decade on.
On the
streets of Berlin, Madrid, and Bratislava, the view is similar: despite
its clear upsides, the transition to the euro hiked the cost of living
even as it introduced deep political and economic uncertainty in the
bloc.
The euro, the most tangible manifestation of European
integration in everyday life, has become a symbol of the debt crisis and
the economic downturn.
"Since we rolled out the euro in France, we gave up our purchasing power," fumes Viviane Vangic, 37, in the Paris city centre.
Eighty-five percent of Germans believe that the euro has pushed up prices, according to a recent survey.
And Maria Angeles in Madrid says that "when we went to the euro, what used to cost 100 pesetas now costs a euro" or 160 pesetas.
Although
the statistics do not bear out this impression, showing about
two-percent inflation each year over the last decade, the accusation of a
built-in price hike is widespread among those who remember their old
currency.
This is particularly true among the newcomers to the euro.
"All
the prices have gone up since we adopted the euro. It has always been
hard for pensioners to make ends meet," says Elena, a 72-year-old in
Bratislava, Slovakia, which adopted the euro in 2009.
"But now young families are also struggling to make a living."
Younger
Europeans, who are suffering from disproportionately high unemployment
in many countries, have little memory of their national currencies and
take the euro for granted.
"I don't even know to convert anymore. I count in euros," said Stephanie Jordan, a 23-year-old Parisian.
"I am committed to the euro -- since I've been spending money it's been in euros," said Ann Hillig, a 24-year-old in Berlin.
For her the mighty deutschmark, for which Germans profess their love in poll after poll, is now a distant memory.
Hillig
says she hopes that the euro has a bright future ahead of it and finds
it "exciting to flip over coins and say,'oh, this one comes from there
or there'," she said, referring to the national symbols from each of the
17 member states on the back of every euro coin.
Moving from one
country to another with the same bills and coins is generally seen as
one of the great strengths of the euro, eliminating the expense,
inconvenience and waste of converting currencies. But tough economic
times have diminished that advantage.
"You don't have to change
money when travelling but now I don't travel anymore because it's
expensive," says Rodny Kamil, 29, a fish seller in Bratislava.
"My
life has got more difficult since the euro adoption but not only the
currency, also the times have changed. With the euro, I have a feeling
that I can buy less for the same amount of money than I could a few
years ago. So in order to buy what I need, I have to work more."
His compatriot Jano Bosansky, a 50-year-old entrepreneur, is sceptical about the future of the eurozone.