The annual inflation rate for the euro area as a whole has averaged 1.7% since 1999. And the rate for Germany has been 1.4%, significantly lower than during the period before the introduction of the euro. Stable prices have been accompanied by significant economic growth (Slide 4).
Over the past decade, in no other large industrialised nation has real per capita income growth been stronger than in Germany. In  2015 prices, each German has on average about € more in their pocket now than they did ten years ago. In Italy, by contrast, average per capita income has remained broadly flat over the same period.