Maastricht, the Euro & German Convergence

The Maastricht Treaty (1992) set the convergence criteria for monetary union, and the euro was introduced in 1999. Within a fixed-exchange-rate currency area, Germany's competitiveness translated into a structurally large current-account surplus over the following two decades.^[1]

1. Deutsche Bundesbank (2025). Balance of Payments Statistics. Deutsche Bundesbank. link.