Today as 20 years ago, in Germany a beer is worth 3 minutes of work. According to research conducted by the IW Institute of Economic Studies in Cologne, the advent of the euro has in no way affected the purchasing power of the Germans, who between 1991 and 2011 they saw their wages grow by 45%, exactly on par with (indeed, slightly better) than the prices of goods and services, which increased by 43% in the same period.
“An hour of work – the authors of the investigation state – allows you to buy the same quantities of goods or services as twenty years ago”. The parameter, and how could it be otherwise in Teutonic land, is beer: a bottle of the local Koelsch "requires today as then exactly three minutes of work".
For some products, however, the time and effort required to pay for them have even decreased, in spite of the crisis that overwhelms the rest of Europe: a German who wants to renew his wardrobe with a nice elegant suit will now be able to afford it with much less effort. To be precise, with five hours less work, almost a working day.
As for other goods or services, however, not even Merkel's lucky subjects are sheltered from the times: a full tank of petrol costs two office hours more. But in two hours, maybe, there's even time to make it on foot.
