the onset of the crisis. as a result, romania had large twin deficits at the start of the crisis, specifically a sizeable structural fiscal gap ( around – 8 % of gdp in 2008 ) and a current account deficit in the double - digit area ( between 2006 and 2008 ). after the crisis hit, romania had no other choice but to undertake the necessary adjustments in order to eliminate these imbalances in an orderly manner. the efforts seem to have already paid off – the year 2013 marked a turnaround in romania ’ s economic development : economic growth of 3. 5 % driven mostly by robust export and industrial output on the supply side ; a small current account deficit ; historically low inflation ; while the fiscal deficit was kept well below 3 %. and i have every reason to believe that romania will see further growth in the years to come. and that, unlike in the pre - crisis period, this time sustainability will be the name of the game, as hopefully we all have learned our lessons from our previous mistakes. as they say, no one really learns but from his own mistakes … bis central bankers ’ speeches talking about sustainable economic growth, one needs to put things into perspective in order to ascertain whether the economy is on the right track. this means that short - term policies must be harmonised with the long - term vision and goals. euro adoption could serve as such a long - term goal. and romania has chosen to use it as an anchor. let me say a few words about this subject. in the post - crisis period, all non - euro area eu countries in central and eastern europe with floating exchange rate regimes ( czech republic, hungary, poland and romania ), as well as bulgaria, shifted to a wait - and - see approach as regards euro adoption, even though, in some of them, maastricht criteria were already fulfilled or within reach. nobody disputes that in the long term it is in the best interest of our countries to adopt euro, as it heightens the degree of business cycle correlation and market integration. however, the benefits of euro adoption are not unconditional ; therefore it is essential to make sure that nominal convergence criteria are achieved on a sustainable basis. also it is important to attain a certain degree of per capita income convergence before switching to the euro ( a large convergence gap may complicate business cycle management in the absence of independent monetary policy ). additionally, it is important to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new institutional setup in preventing

in the euro area at levels consistent with price stability. therefore, looking ahead, acting in a firm and timely manner to ensure price stability in the medium term remains warranted. concerning other policy areas, the governing council welcomed the recommendations addressed to the euro area countries in the 2007 update of the integrated guidelines, which was endorsed by the european council at its meeting on 8 and 9 march, particularly to speed up fiscal consolidation, to improve the quality of public finances, to foster competition and integration, and to promote labour market reforms. indeed, as regards fiscal policy, it is of the utmost importance to use the momentum of the improved economic situation and to press ahead vigorously with budgetary consolidation. government deficit and debt - to - gdp ratios in euro area countries in 2006 have turned out to be significantly better than anticipated. but this positive outcome largely reflects buoyant tax revenues in the context of a favourable macroeconomic environment, offsetting in some cases higher than planned public expenditure. the better than expected fiscal outcomes in 2006 should lead to more ambitious targets for 2007 and beyond, allowing revenue windfalls to be fully allocated to deficit and debt reduction. furthermore, procyclical fiscal policies should be avoided in all countries. this is of vital importance to ensure fiscal sustainability in preparation for the impact of ageing populations and is fully in line with the revised stability and growth pact. reviewing public expenditure and taxation so as to improve the quality of public finances would additionally foster economic growth and fiscal sustainability. we also support ambitious structural reforms, which would further contribute to the smooth functioning of monetary union and support growth potential and job creation. in particular, improving labour market flexibility to better align wage and productivity developments and facilitating labour mobility would further strengthen the resilience of countries to shocks and ensure their competitiveness. we are now at your disposal for questions.