The Financial Structure in the Netherlands and Germany: Different, Harmonious, and on the Move?

The current favourable economic performance of the Netherlands compared to Germany is often attributed to moderate wage developments as well as to the fact that structural measures have been taken at a relatively early stage. These structural measures have mainly served to improve the functioning of labour and goods markets. Apart from differences in the structure of labour and goods markets, many differences also exist between German and Dutch capital markets. Apparently, these differences in the structure of financial markets have not harmed the close monetary relations between the two countries. For almost 15 years now, the guilder has been linked very tightly to the Deutschmark, and the credibility of this link is not a heavily debated issue in financial markets, to say the least.