It would only be a slight exaggeration to say that money is what you save in accounts but spend as notes and coins. Germany is the world’s number one country in the use of cash.
This has helped incomes to recover and has supported strong growth in consumption in recent years, with per capita consumption moving back towards its pre-crisis peak.2 The impact of the economic crisis in the South West region (including Cork) and the subsequent recovery has been broadly similar to the national experience.