Allianz warns against D-Mark return

Munich - According to the insurer Allianz, a return of the D-Mark would cost Germany wealth and jobs. The result would be "a much greater shock than the Lehman crisis" warned Allianz Chief Economist Michael Heise in the daily newspaper "Die Welt" on Monday. The appreciation of up to 20 percent would increase the price of German products abroad and would reduce exports by up to 20 percent. Companies would have to reconsider their location, and the closure of production facilities could jeopardize the German economy significantly. Europe's largest insurance company warned that if this were to happen, four to five years after the end of the monetary union, there would most likely be production losses of up to 25 percent compared to a normal economic development.