‘Euro-rage’ fails to materialize

Associated Press

BERLIN — Cashiers across Europe were on the front lines of the largest currency changeover in history Wednesday, taking on the central role of getting old money out of circulation and new euros into the pockets of consumers.

At the Kaufland supermarket chain in Berlin, cashier Isabell Schosstag greeted every customer with the same question: "Will you be paying in euros or Deutsche marks?"

The question was echoed in other languages, about other currencies, across the 12-nation euro zone on the first full day of business since the bills and coins were introduced Jan. 1.

Minor glitches aside, concerns that the transition would evoke "euro-rage" from frustrated consumers appeared unfounded.

Schosstag said weeks of reading about the euro and its security features — and even several days of "euro-school" — gave her confidence. Yet she took special care when counting the change back to customers, laying each coin out deliberately.

"It’s a little slower because you have to concentrate more, and you also have to make double sure of the change you’re giving, but nobody’s asking any questions," Schosstag said.

About a third of Schosstag’s customers paid in the new currency, a third in the Deutsche mark, and a third with their debit cards. The store had boosted the number of cashiers by a third to prevent long lines.

"I brought a bunch of my old change and had no problems," said Karin Krebs, who paid for groceries with a handful of mark coins she wanted to get rid of. "I have euros at home, though."

Krebs’ experience is just what European Central Bank officials have been hoping for. The bank intends to vacuum most of the old currencies from circulation within two weeks by asking retailers to give euros as change and by having ATMs dispense only the new bills.

Still, in many places, to spare confusion, clerks were giving change in the outgoing currencies if customers paid in them.

After the first day of the changeover, 80 percent of the euro zone’s 200,000 ATMs were dispensing euros, with the figure reaching 100 percent in Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Demand for money from the machines reached four times the daily average on Jan. 1, the European Central Bank said.

"The euro cash changeover is going smoothly, even better than we had expected," the bank’s Eugenio Domingo Solans said.

As of midday, the euro had surged in value from 88 U.S. cents to more than 90 U.S. cents, largely because the successful changeover has created a sense of confidence, said market analyst Dorothea Huttanus, of DZ Bank.

Officials warned shoppers to beware of salespeople giving incorrect change. But the difficulty of the new conversions was evident when reporters asked Portuguese Finance Minister Guilherme Oliveira Martins to give the escudo equivalent of 100 euros.

"That’s … er … well, it’s going to take some time to get used to it all," he replied.