Thursday 14 October 2010

Hyperinflation - C.B.


What caused the hyperinflation in Germany after the First World War?

In 1923 Germany was forced to pay reparations for World War One, this left them therefore in major debt to their enemies. This resulted in there being a shortage of goods supplied to the country. This meant that everyone in Germany had to pay more money to get the goods they needed.

What caused the hyperinflation?

The French had sent troops into the German industrial area of the Ruhr and confiscated raw materials, manufactured goods and industrial machinery. The cause of the hyperinflation was when the German workers refused to work at the factories which would help repay the debt Germany was in. This meant that no money was going into or out of Germany, leaving everyone in the country in a difficult situation.

What were the effects of the hyperinflation?

The banks started off printing money rapidly, millions and millions of marks. They thought that if they did this then they would be able to pay off their debts; the effect of this was that each note decreased in value. As more and more money was printed peoples savings that they had in their bank decreased to nearly nothing. It cost 1 mark in 1919 to by a loaf of bread; by 1922 it cost 200 marks to buy the same loaf of bread; by 1923 it cost 100,000 million marks! It was actually cheaper to burn your money at the time for fuel than to buy coal and wood.

By C.B.

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