Geography and urban development of Dresden temperatures are almost the same as those in cities in southwest Germany; on average 10.2°C per year. In hot summers, Dresden is between the hot Lusatia and the milder Ore Mountains. Both regions are characterised by strong winters: temperatures of −20°C are not impossible in Dresden. The driest months are February and March, with precipitation of 40 mm. Spring months have often been arid in the last couple of years (with less than 10 mm of precipitation). The most precipitation falls in July and August, at 60 mm per month. Due to its location on the banks of the Elbe
Accession of Hamburg to the German Customs Union (Zollverein) not in itself mean that it must also be outside the tax frontier. For example, the Imperial Stamp Duty, which was not a consumption tax, was applied in the Hanseatic states as well as the Customs Union. For consumption taxes the Hanseatic cities were treated like other foreign states. The brandy or sugar supplier in the Customs Union received an export remuneration upon dispatch to Hamburg. This was passed on to the Hamburg consumer who received the Customs Union product free of Customs Union tax and, the reduction was not negated by any high import tariff or consumption tax levied