Spaniards still have not fully understood the value of a euro and often tip too much, adding to the sense that life is more expensive, Economy Minister Pedro Solbes said on December 15th.
"I see people having a couple of coffees and calmly leaving a euro as a tip. That's 50 percent of the value of the product," Solbes said at a political rally to discuss economic issues ahead of next year's general elections.
"People haven't taken on board the value of a euro. 20 cents is 32 pesetas, a euro is 160," he said.
Before the euro hit the streets in 2002, leaving a 25 peseta tip was the norm. One euro was worth 166.386 pesetas.
Spain's inflation has outstripped other eurozone countries in the last years, partly fuelled by above-average growth.
In November, higher oil and food prices shot inflation up to a 22-month high of 4.1 percent year-on-year.
