of these “ mega - trends ” is very substantial, although it is difficult to quantify them precisely. in my view, the euro area as a whole has exhibited resilience to such external developments. it is, as a whole, significantly more resilient than many of its individual member countries were before the launch of the euro. 3 the euro area has been a source of stability. in short, the current state of the euro area is one of increasing interdependence and ongoing integration. over these ten years, we have observed greater price stability, greater macroeconomic stability, as well as increasing economic and financial integration. however, despite these achievements, there is no room for complacency, and a great deal still needs to be accomplished. i now want to put forward the argument that several changes in this second decade and beyond will have to come from the “ e ” in emu : namely that there is a need for further substantial efforts and reforms on the economic side. in other words, i argue that there is a need for a sound economic management. this has two facets. the first is that the overall level of economic performance in the euro area needs to improve. think, for example, of the question as to how the euro area as a whole might raise its potential growth … and actually grow at such a higher level. the second facet is that we need to understand and address diversity of economic performance across the euro area. think, for example, of the question as to the extent to which euro area countries differ in terms of economic performance. i will deal with these aspects in turn. not so long ago, the impact of movements of the deutsche mark against the us dollar was often aggravated by similar movements between the currencies that have now been replaced by the euro. this can no longer happen. this increasing resilience is illustrated by the fact that the major shocks of the last ten years have not played an important role in the dispersion of output growth. in other words, they have not contributed to the economic diversity that i will now go on to discuss. 2. on the economic performance of the euro area the achievements i have just described have accompanied an impressive performance in terms of job creation. from the start of emu to the end of last year, as i have already mentioned, the number of people in employment in the euro area has increased by 15. 7 million, compared with an increase of only some 5 million in

peter praet : interview in financial times interview with mr peter praet, member of the executive board of the european central bank, in financial times, conducted by ms claire jones and published on 12 december 2013. * * * the european central bank has forecast inflation of 1. 3 per cent in 2015, which is usually seen as the policy - relevant horizon. how can you justify not doing more now when inflation is forecast to be almost a third below your target two years from now? we aim at an inflation rate of close but below 2 % over the medium term. given the subdued outlook for prices, we are already doing a lot. we have cut rates. since july 2012 our overnight rate has been in general lower than that controlled by any other major central bank. we have offered our forward guidance. we have extended the conduct of our main refinancing operations as fixed rate tender procedures full allotment until at least 7 july 2015. so, after a prolonged period of low inflation, we would expect inflation rates to return back to rates closer to 2 %. however, this will take some time given the nature of the shock, namely the unwinding of real and financial imbalances, and the possibly longer than normal transmission lag of monetary policy in such an environment. but we have also said that we are ready to act again should risks to the downside materialise. what matters, in particular, is that medium to long term inflation expectations remain firmly anchored in line with price stability. mr draghi said last thursday that there had been a brief discussion of negative interest rates and that any further ltro would have to involve an extension of lending to the real economy. are these two policies for which you feel as though you could build a strong consensus of support on the governing council should economic – or financial – conditions disappoint? what is important here is to remember that the governing council unanimously – and i ’ d like to emphasise this – shares the same assessment of economic conditions. there is unanimity on the outlook ; the view on the economy is very much shared in the governing council. price pressures are going to be subdued for a prolonged period of time as a result, we all agree to have an accommodative monetary policy for as long as needed. and even take more measures, if needed. that ’ s why we can say : we are ready to act and able to act. under what conditions would you act? we