Jean-Claude Trichet: The Euro - a major structural reform of the European
economy
Speech by Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, Governor of the Banque de France, at the NIKKEI Euro
Symposium, London, 5 November 2001.
* * *
Ladies and gentlemen, it is a great pleasure and an honour for me to be speaking here today, at the
Nikkei Euro Symposium, in front of such a distinguished audience. I am particularly pleased to express
my views on the euro and its prospects following the launch of the notes and coins, which will be a
reality within 8 weeks
The economic and financial ties between Europe and Japan have been strengthened significantly over
the recent period : European investors and companies have stepped up their market presence in
Japan these last two years ; likewise, Japanese foreign direct investments in the Euro area and
Japanese portfolio investments in euro since January 1999 have highlighted the confidence in the
European single currency.
I would like to explain why the euro and Monetary Union have been successful from the outset,
and the conditions and prospects for building on this achievement. I will then discuss the
historical event of the introduction of banknotes and coins at the end of this year.
I. The euro and Monetary union are based on a credible monetary policy, and contribute
to an APPROPRIATE economic and monetary equilibrium in Europe
1. The euro is based on a credible, stability-oriented monetary policy
a) I would like to point out that, from a technical point of view, the launch of the euro on
financial markets, on 1 January 1999, has been an indisputable success, and that the
Eurosystem, made up of the ECB and the National Central Banks of the euro area, has fully
achieved the objectives assigned to it in the following areas:
- operational efficiency, highlighted by the precise adjustment of banking liquidity and
effective steering of short-term interest rates;
- the security provided by the procedures and systems implemented, both for the
execution of interbank transactions, and vis-à-vis large-value payments. The
interbank market became integrated in early January 1999, right from the start of Monetary
Union, thanks to the setting up of the Target system for the real-time transfer of
largevalue payments throughout the euro area and in other EU countries.
- and, finally, the smooth functioning of the Eurosystem, which is an integrated
organisation in which the decision-making centre works in constant contact with the
national central banks on the implementation of operations.
b) Together with many other factors, this technical and operational success has contributed to
the high level of credibility of the single monetary policy which is based, in particular, on
the independence of the European Central Bank and national central banks, and on the
store of confidence inherited from the latter.
Moreover, contrary to popular belief, European Monetary Union did not start from scratch.
For no less than 12 years before the launch of the euro, six of the twelve currencies which
now make up the euro - and represent almost two thirds of euro-area GDP - had proven
remarkably stable, and were not realigned within the ERM.
This high degree of confidence also stems from the acknowledged efficiency of the
operational set-up of the Eurosystem, which is based on the principle of decentralisation
stipulated in the Treaty. The Eurosystem is a team. The European monetary team now
comprises the ECB and the national central banks of twelve Member States, following the
Bank of Greece's entry on 1 January 2001. All the members of the Eurosystem work in close
co-operation.
c) The credibility of the Eurosystem lies, fundamentally, in its stability-oriented monetary
policy strategy.
The Maastricht Treaty has given us a mandate for maintaining price stability. We have
decided to be as clear and as transparent as possible by providing a clear definition of price
stability: that is to say a year-on-year increase in the overall Harmonised Index of Consumer
below
Prices (HICP) of the euro area of 2%.
The aim of the single monetary policy is to ensure medium-term price stability, therefore
creating a favourable monetary and financial environment for economic growth. Price
stability offers an anchor for wage negotiators, and is a necessary factor for competitiveness,
which is in turn essential for achieving balanced and therefore sustainable economic growth.
The euro area is however a complex financial and economic zone. For this reason, we have
adopted a broader-based approach, taking into account all relevant data. We have thus
based our monetary policy on two "pillars".
In view of the monetary origins of inflation in the medium term, we have assigned a key role
to the monetary aggregate M3, which constitutes the first "pillar" of our monetary policy
strategy. This pillar is based on a reference value which we set at 4.5% for the annual
growth rate of the broad monetary aggregate M3. This monetary indicator is regarded as
being the most compatible with medium-term price stability. Last December, we confirmed
this 4.5% growth rate for M3. The concept of a reference value does not imply a commitment
on the part of the Eurosystem to automatically correct deviations in monetary growth in the
short term. The reference value of M3 is consistent with lasting price stability. Naturally, we
also follow the counterparts of M3 closely, that is to say the sources of money creation, and
especially lending to the economy and capital flows with the rest of the world.
However, trends in monetary aggregates are not in themselves sufficient for assessing the
risks to price stability. This is why we need an exhaustive description of the prevailing
economic and financial situation. The second pillar of the monetary policy strategy is based
on a broad range of variables acting as leading indicators of the outlook for euro area price
developments.
Our monetary strategy ensures a continuity from the monetary policies previously
conducted by the national central banks, which now belong to the Eurosystem. This strategy
has been well received by financial markets and the general public. In particular, the
relatively low yields on long-term euro-denominated bonds confirm that the Eurosystem has
retained the credibility store it inherited.
d) Lastly, the credibility of the euro also results from the Eurosystem's constant efforts in terms
of transparency and communication. I must stress here that the Eurosystem is one of the
most transparent central banks in the world. Once a month, immediately after the ECB
Governing Council meeting, the President of the ECB holds a press conference which starts
with a precise report of the assessment of the Governing Council, and which is made
available in real time on the ECB website.
The Eurosystem was the first central bank in the world to introduce, on 1 January 1999, the
concept of regular, frequent, real-time communication in the domain of monetary policy.
Other major central banks have since decided to follow us.
Being accountable, for an independent institution in a modern democracy - or, as it is the
case for the Eurosystem, in a subtle constellation of democracies like the European
Union - means being accountable to public opinion.
In this respect, both public speeches and testimonies by the President of the ECB to the
attention of the European Institutions and public opinion, as well as those by the Governors
of National Central Banks to the attention of national Institutions and public opinion, are of
vital significance. Indeed, a crucial part of our collective duty consists in tirelessly explaining
the reasons and the arguments that underpin the decisions of the Governing Council.
In December 2000, the Eurosystem decided to release, for the first time, its euro area
economic staff projections, with a view to improving transparency and communication.
Thus, from the point of view of the accountability of the central bank in a democratic
society - that is to say the duty to explain, justify, convince, whenever possible, and take full
responsibility vis-à-vis public opinion for decisions taken -, the Eurosystem strives to meet
the highest standards of the main central banks in the world.
2. The euro significantly contributes to growth in Europe by enhancing the co-ordination
of economic policies
A few years ago, it was necessary to convince a great number of sceptics, in Europe as well as in the
rest of the world, that the euro would really be launched. Many observers believed that the single
monetary policy would never succeed ! Facts have disproved this conclusion. However, other
observers still sometimes evoke the supposed fragility of the euro area stemming from the supposed
economic and structural divergences between euro area countries.
How can we answer this important question?
Firstly, monetary union does not necessarily imply that, at any given point in time, all
participating countries will have the same rate of inflation or growth, even though the creation
of the euro was based on the successful completion of a convergence process.
Let us take inflation for example. Inflation divergences across countries or regions are quite natural in
a monetary union.
In the euro area, to a of prices naturally gives rise to different
long-term convergence common level
inflation rates across countries. The convergence of productivity and living standards creates a trend
towards price convergence.
Now, present differentials in the Euro area are not very large, in comparison with those sometimes
observed in the United States, which is a long established monetary union of comparable size.
My intimate conviction is that we will witness further European integration and, in the medium term, an
increasing correlation of economic developments in the area. Several academic studies show that
business cycles are becoming more synchronous across Europe.
the question has often been raised as to whether EMU can be a success without
Secondly,
some form of enhanced political union. Indeed, to achieve this, the correct mix is required between
fiscal, economic and monetary policies.
In the European Union, Member States are responsible for conducting economic and fiscal policies.
We therefore believe that these policies should be closely co-ordinated. Co-ordination is stressed in
the Treaty itself, which requests that Member States treat national economic policies "as a matter of
common concern" and subject them to a multilateral procedure. Naturally, this economic co-ordination
can in no way undermine the independence of the ECB and the Eurosystem.
Even more importantly, the euro area possesses institutional mechanisms which are conducive to an
appropriate policy mix: the Stability and Growth Pact includes, on the part of the Member States, strict
fiscal requirements. I will cite three economic justifications for the Treaty provisions that gave rise to
the Stability and Growth Pact:
- First, by keeping a rein on the fiscal policies of the EMU Member States, the Pact ensures a
satisfactory policy mix within the euro area. This is essential for monetary policy, in order to
counterbalance the fact that Europe does not have a federal government and hence no
significant "federal" budget. Mutual surveillance and close co-ordination of fiscal policies are
the responsibility of the "Eurogroup" and of the Ecofin Council. Keeping the deficit below
3 % of GDP, and achieving budgets that are "close to balance or in surplus" in the medium
term, ensure a balanced policy mix throughout the euro area.
- Second, the Pact helps to prevent well-managed economies from having to bear an
unjustified risk premium on interest rates, resulting from the poor management of other EMU
economies, by setting up a penalty system for excessive deficits.
- And lastly, the Stability and Growth Pact disproves the assertion that the euro area has no
automatic stabilisers in the event of asymmetric shocks to a Member State. Indeed, by
urging governments to aim at a fiscal position "close to balance or in surplus" in the medium
term, the Pact enables them to allow budget deficits to increase during periods of specific
national difficulties without exceeding the 3% reference value. In short, it enables countries
to create a fiscal buffer during periods of normal economic conditions. This buffer can be
drawn on to counter economic divergences or asymmetric shocks during economic
downturns. But of course, the extent to which Governments can let automatic stabilisers play
strictly depends on the initial level of the fiscal balance; obviously countries which still have
fiscal deficits have less room than countries with budgets close to balance or in surplus.
II. The Euro itself is a catalyst for further progress
While many acknowledge that the introduction of the euro on 1 January 1999 was broadly successful,
one may ask, at this juncture, what the conditions are for the full and ongoing success of the euro in
the medium and long term. What is very encouraging in this respect is the fact that, in a number of
areas, the euro in itself appears to be a catalyst for meeting these conditions.
1. The euro deepens and completes the single market
a) The euro makes the possible. It enables the productive
completion of the single market
sector and companies to achieve significant economies of scale, and all European savings to
be allocated to the most efficient investments. It also enhances the transparency of the
market and boosts competition and innovation to the benefit of consumers. However, the
ultimate objective of the single market could not be fully achieved while monetary barriers
continued to prevent the free flow of goods, services and capital by imposing unpredictable
and erratic exchange rate movements and transaction costs. The last step in this process
will be the euro cash changeover at the end of this year; it will enable not only companies but
all our citizens to enjoy all the benefits of using the same monetary instrument throughout
Europe, just like Americans do today with the dollar throughout the United States.
b) Moreover, the introduction of the euro brings about a
significant change in the economic
and financial environment.
The introduction of the euro has been a strong catalyst for mergers and acquisitions in the
euro area. The European M&A market has been in 2000 one of the most dynamic in the
world with operations totalling around one trillion euro.
The single monetary policy encourages structural changes in the financial sector, in both the
euro area money market and longer-term capital markets. This gives euro area investors
greater possibilities and improved financing and investment conditions.
- From the beginning of January 1999, cross-border transactions increased
money market
sharply, to reach almost two-thirds of total activity on all money market segments. The
unsecured deposit interbank market -which is mainly concentrated on the shortest
maturities- is highly integrated. The integration of interest rate markets within the euro area
is a key achievement which deserves to be underscored. EONIA and EURIBOR have
provided the market with uniform benchmarks that are fully accepted by all market
participants. This is reflected, for instance, in the amount of daily transactions and the huge
development of the euro interest-rate swap market.
These structural changes in the euro area money market have prompted market participants
to concentrate their euro cash management activity in order to take advantage of the higher
liquidity levels on the secondary market. Needless to say, such integration has to be brought
to fruition in the other segments of the money market, i.e. the repo market and the short-term
securities market. Further integration will enhance the efficiency of the euro area financial
markets and will be beneficial to both borrowers and investors.
- As regards stock markets and bond markets, major progress has been made in terms of
integration.
According to recent statistics, the euro, together with the dollar, appears to have been a
major bond issuance currency in the first semester of 2001, with the euro accounting for
close to 40% of total issuance. Furthermore, European investors have substantially
diversified their bond portfolios since the introduction of the euro, prompted by the removal
of the exchange rate risk. This enables them to achieve better performances for a given
level of portfolio risk.
Additionally, I would like to draw your attention to current trends in mergers or close
cooperation between stock exchanges, securities settlement systems, clearing houses, and
similar institutions. Had the euro not been created, would it have been thinkable that the
Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam exchanges merge to create EURONEXT and recently
conclude another major alliance ? Undeniably, the introduction of the euro is fostering very
large-scale market restructuring throughout Europe.
There are still some barriers to further integration of EU capital markets. In this regard, the
Eurosystem has welcomed the objective of the European Council meeting in Lisbon in March
2000, to accelerate completion of the internal market for financial services, and to set a tight
timetable so that the Financial Services Action Plan may be implemented by 2005 ; a regular
review of this Plan is made by European authorities, and progress is well under way. The
Eurosystem also supports the strategic conclusions of the Committee chaired by
A. Lamfalussy on the integration of the European securities markets, ratified by the
European Council meeting in Stockholm in March 2001: we are convinced that the
implementation of these broad guidelines and the new cooperation structures at the
European level will help to improve capital allocation in Europe and foster developments on
equity markets in line with monetary policy requirements.
2. The euro is an incentive for further structural reforms
a) The euro, per se, is also a strong catalyst for structural reforms in all non-financial
domains in Europe: a single currency facilitates the comparison of prices, taxes and
earnings. The euro could encourage "cross fertilisation" of best practices through increased
co-ordination of Member States' structural policies in areas such as the labour market,
education and training, job creation incentives, effective welfare safety nets, etc. For this
reason, the European Council, meeting in Luxembourg in December 1997, explicitly
mentioned structural policies among the items selected for reinforced co-ordination. The
Lisbon European Council further enhanced the medium-term strategy necessary for
structural reform in the Union. The following developments are a step in the right direction:
the emphasis on deepening the single market, the setting of indicators allowing comparisons
of best practices among the Member States, and the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines
which will examine the structural issues closely. The recent European Council meetings in
Stockholm in March 2001 and Gothenburg in June 2001 confirmed these guidelines and
even added a number of important issues such as the consequences of the ageing
population in the European Union, the role of biotechnologies in economic growth, and the
environment. The European Heads of State and Government, meeting in Ghent a couple of
weeks ago, called for an acceleration of the whole process.
All European countries must resolutely pursue the reforms they have already initiated. It
must be acknowledged that much has already been done, in particular with the
implementation of the single market. However, continental Europe is still experiencing levels
of unemployment that are too high, despite the fact that the unemployment rate has been
declining significantly in most of its economies for the past three years. According to the IMF,
the OECD and central banks, 75% of unemployment is of a structural nature, i.e. generated
by an environment which handicaps job creation.
There is no doubt that EMU stimulates structural reforms on the labour market. With
increased capital mobility and the smooth functioning of the single market, firms will become
increasingly sensitive to the general environment in terms of their competitiveness when
choosing a particular location in the euro area. The actual process of selecting an investment
location within the euro area will be a major incentive for undertaking the necessary reforms.
b) Besides structural reforms, a strong emphasis must be placed on
competitiveness.
Pre-euro economic policy required careful monitoring of the balance of payments and the
foreign exchange and interest-rate markets. The authorities received constant feedback on
key indicators affecting national economic performance and could then react accordingly.
These indicators were sensitive, multiple and very reactive.
At present, with the advent of the single currency, economic managers must monitor the
relevant competitiveness indicators with even greater vigilance, as economic policy errors
could have slower and more insidious repercussions, such as rising unemployment and
weak growth.
The rules of a market economy continue to apply to all euro area countries. Jobs are created
by consumers - totally free to purchase whatever they wish - when they choose the goods
and services that they deem to be best value for money. Companies - totally free in their
investment choices - locate their business according to the relative competitiveness of the
different possible sites. It is therefore necessary to monitor competitiveness even more
closely than before, in particular unit production costs, and the tax and regulatory framework.
The multilateral surveillance carried out in the context of the Eurogroup, will help monitor
competition trends in each euro area country and in the zone as a whole and, where
necessary, suggest appropriate adjustments.
III. A smooth changeover to the Euro will also be a determining factor for Europeans'
confidence in their new currency
Of course, the Eurosystem is at the heart of the euro cash changeover process. Our challenge
consists in replacing all national monetary units by the euro in all monetary and financial relations of
public administrations, banks, enterprises, businesses and citizens.
The first contribution of the Eurosystem is the euro banknote production. Today, more than 12 billion
banknotes have been manufactured, out of a total of 14.9 billion. The launch stock is almost ready.
The manufacturing process has been carefully monitored, in accordance with state of the art security
standards. The new banknotes combine many of the highly effective security features already used in
the national banknotes of the euro area with a number of additional features specifically used for the
euro. These security features provide all persons handling cash, especially the general public, with the
means to carry out a rapid, easy, and effective examination of the euro banknotes. Special attention
has also been given to the needs of the blind and partially sighted.
The Eurosystem also plays a key role in the supplying process of euro banknotes and in the
withdrawing process of former national monetary units. At the national level, each central bank of the
euro area works in close co-operation with credit institutions, security companies, shopkeepers and
police forces. This fruitful concertation is essential to the success of such a huge operation, on both
fields of logistics and security.
The "non-cash" euro is already in use
The final stage of the introduction of the euro will include two changeovers: the changeover to the
noncash euro, which concerns all book-entry transactions (cheques, bank accounts, bank card payments,
transfers, loans, etc.) and the changeover to the cash euro, which concerns banknotes and coins.
This summer, banks in France started to systematically convert bank accounts into euros and provide
customers with euro cheque books. In various participating countries, in particular France, all bank
accounts have already been converted . It is now up to each citizen in the euro area to establish a new
scale of values for the currency and to make payments in euro. In this respect, retailers have a
fundamental role to play: their active participation and their readiness to accept payments in euro will
greatly facilitate the euro changeover as a whole.
The cash euro will be in circulation within 8 weeks
As regards the cash euro, the main task now consists in frontloading the banknotes and coins so that,
on 1 January 2002, transactions can be carried out smoothly in the best possible security conditions.
To achieve this, frontloaded coins are supplied to credit institutions. Banknotes will soon be provided
to them (as of 1 December in France). Retailers will also be provided with frontloaded banknotes and
coins. Furthermore, in order to familiarise the public and to facilitate the giving of change as of
1 January 2002, individuals will be able to obtain, as of mid-December, packs of euro coins known as
'euro starter kits'; these coins cannot be used for payments before 1st January 2002.
As of 1 January 2002, banks will only deliver euros, retailers will give change in euro and ATMs will
supply euro banknotes only. A few days after this date, almost all transactions will be carried out in
euro.
Beyond technical aspects, the Eurosystem -and also public authorities- have an important
responsibility in informing the general public on the challenges ahead, the deadlines and the
practical aspects of the euro cash changeover. The success of the global process depends heavily on
the confidence of the general public and cash handlers as well. Preparing people to be well informed
and to feel confident in using the euro banknotes and coins is the overall objective of the Euro 2002
Information Campaign conducted by the Eurosystem. This campaign aims to reach the general public
through the mass media. It is closely supported by a Europe-wide Partnership Programme with more
than 2 600 national and international organisations. It has now entered into an intensive information
phase, since the unveiling of the euro banknotes and their security features by our President, W.
Duisenberg, on 30th of August. As Mr Duisenberg stressed, this event was more than a mere technical
presentation, but took on an historical and symbolic dimension. On 1 January 2002, we will have the
honour of witnessing the largest currency changeover that the world has ever experienced. This will be
the crowning achievement of a long economic and political process which led to the creation of
Monetary Union on 1 January 1999. This unique event in European history will help to ensure lasting
prosperity, which is not only in Europe's interest but that of the rest of the world as well.
Lastly, speaking in front of bankers, financial institutions, business executives and journalists, I would
like to make the following remarks as regards the present situation:
-first, the main message in the present exceptional circumstances, is that the first quality of all
Institutions, all economic leaders, all enterprises as well as households is to keep one's nerves. The
best gift we could give the terrorists would be to change our plans, to cancel endeavours, to delay
decisions, to reduce investment or consumption. We, Institutions, enterprises, individuals had and
have projects : let us realize them, in time, and unchanged.
-second, let us beware of fashion. It was still fashionable, a year ago, to embark on vibrant eloge of
the new economy, to predict the end of the business cycle and to forecast for ever very high level of
productivity progress and buoyant economic growth. To-day some kind of herd behaviour drives a lot
of observers and actors in the opposite direction: overwhelming pessimism as regards the present
situation and the economic future. Both attitudes are equally totally inappropriate. It is up to the
Central Banks to remain moderate in their judgments, pragmatic and lucid in the various
circumstances and to offer an anchor not only for monetary and financial stability but also for stability
of judgment.
-third, fostering confidence is a major contribution of the Eurosystem to the prosperity of the European
economy. Confidence is a very precious ingredient in the present European conjuncture, as recently
emphasized by the European Council in Ghent : confidence in the euro, in price stability, in its ability to
be a highly reliable instrument for savings, in its medium and long term solidity. Confidence of the
consumers in price stability underpins growth through dynamic household consumption - which is
today a major motor of economic growth. Confidence of the savers underpins growth through a
favourable financial environment.
Thank you very much for your attention.