[martinlaz]

> If the Euro was stronger, which it would be if it were only the currency for Germany, I'd get less Euro when that conversion happened, and I'd have less local currency for things like rent, groceries, etc.

But wouldn't you be able to still buy exactly the same stuff with less (but stronger) Euros?

[wheels]

No. My rent won't go down in Euro just because the Euro is strong. The strength or weakness of a currency mostly dictates how it interacts with goods and services from outside of its currency zone. So I might be able to buy more consumer electronics (which mostly aren't produced in Germany) with a strong Euro, but rent, milk, bread, which are internal to Germany, will stay approximately the same in their Euro denomination.

This is true in most places without particularly volatile currencies, though in countries that do have very volatile currencies, things like rent have historically been specified in stable currencies like US Dollars, Deutsche Mark or Euro.

[martinlaz]

The point is that these extra Euros, if they were any significant amount, in the local market would drive the demand for goods up, along with their prices. And then we'd be buying the same amount of stuff, just more expensive.

Surely things like rent take longer to reflect an increased demand but they do eventually catch up.