CASH ONLY: Head to the checkout at an Ikea in Stockholm to pay for your new leather corner sofa and with the swipe of a Visa card it's yours. Don't try that in Berlin - that'll be (EURO)1,699 ($2,080) up front please.

CONTEXT: It's that financial culture - a deep-seated aversion to debt and an emphasis on responsibility - that makes Chancellor Angela Merkel's hardline approach to solving the European financial crisis so popular in Germany.

PERMEATES GERMANY: The attitude shows up in all walks of life, from the daily trip to the grocery store to putting a roof over your head.