mr noyer considers the role of the central bank in encouraging and safeguarding savings speech given by mr christian noyer, vice - president of the european central bank, at the eurofonds colloquium in paris, held on 21 january 2000. * * * ladies and gentlemen, it is a great pleasure to be taking part in this eurofonds colloquium on savings. i should like to take this opportunity to share with you some thoughts on the role of a central bank in encouraging and safeguarding savings. this is indeed a crucial matter, since the level of savings largely determines the long - term level of productive investment, which provides the basis for solid and stable growth. moreover, the level and structure of savings affects, in various ways, the cost and means of financing enterprises, the profitability of the financial sector and the distribution of income between generations in view of the central issue of financing retirement. i should like to focus my presentation, as i am sure you will understand, not on the central bank in theory but on the role of the eurosystem in this field, that is, the european central bank and the 11 national central banks of the euro area. in addition, i shall say a few words on the impact of the launch of the euro on the development and safeguarding of savings in europe. i shall therefore develop two points : • by safeguarding price stability, the eurosystem contributes to the safeguarding and consolidation of savings. • the creation of the euro is leading to larger and more integrated financial markets, improving the allocation of financial savings. 1. by safeguarding price stability, the eurosystem contributes to the safeguarding and consolidation of savings. the primary objective of the monetary policy of the eurosystem, as laid down in the treaty, is price stability. this objective is founded on the conviction that price stability makes it possible to ensure the full efficiency of the price mechanism and to avoid both arbitrary redistribution of wealth as a result of inflation as well as the costs and distortions caused by uncertainty and periodical adjustments of nominal values. these positive effects of price stability obviously benefit savings. i personally see three aspects to this : an effect on the protection of the value of savings, an effect on their structure and allocation, and finally an effect on the distribution of saving within society. first, by aiming at price stability, monetary policy directly preserves the real value of a large proportion of financial savings. this is immediately obvious in the case of fidu

your conference today, he would slightly amend the opening line of his famous declaration in 1950 and say : " le systeme financiere europeene ne saurait etre sauvegardee sans des efforts createurs a la mesure des dangers qui la menacent ". or to put it in our common language, " europe's financial system cannot be safeguarded without the making of creative efforts proportionate to the dangers which threaten it ". our responsibility as leaders is to inspire and support those creative efforts as we meet the challenges in front of us. collectively and individually, we are responsible for the stewardship of our organisations so that they are fit for our successors. to paraphrase keynes, we need to disembarrass ourselves of short views and take wings into the future. one of my favourite poems is seamus heaney's beacons at bealtaine, a poem written to mark the eu's expansion nearly 20 years ago and which speaks, as heaney put it, " for our honour and dignity as europeans ". there's a line in it which for me captures a leader's role : move lips, move minds and make new meanings flare. 6 / 7 bis - central bankers'speeches diversity, connections, outcomes, ambition, and leadership. he tangata, he tangata, he tangata. move lips, move minds and make new meanings flare. 1 blinder, a. s., goodhart, c., wyplosz, c., hildebrand, p. and lipton, d., 2001. how do central banks talk?. centre for economic policy research. p66 2 nouriel roubini, megathreats, ( john murray, 2022 ) 3 https : / / european - union. europa. eu / principles - countries - history / history - eu / 1945 - 59 / schuman - declaration - may - 1950 _ fr 4 john maynard keynes, economic possibilities for our grandchildren, ( 1930 ) in essays in persuasion ( harcourt brace, 1932 ), 358 - 373 5 https : / / youtu. be / fzq8tanftxe 7 / 7 bis - central bankers'speeches