seated in alphabetical order by surname, rather than by nationality, showing that ecb decision - makers act in the interest of the euro area as a whole, rather than in their national interest, when deciding on monetary policy. and the rationale of the latest of these monetary policy decisions is what i want to turn to next. the euro area economic outlook and the ecb ’ s response 1 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches since the beginning of this year, euro area growth momentum has slowed markedly, by more than we had previously anticipated. the september ecb staff projections expect the euro area economy to grow by just 1. 1 % in 2019, 0. 6 percentage points less than estimated in the december 2018 staff projections, and by 1. 2 % in 2020, down by 0. 5 percentage points from the december projections. this slowdown is mainly due to the weakness of international trade in an environment of persistent uncertainties related to protectionist policies and geopolitical factors. these factors are increasingly weighing on economic sentiment and, in particular, on the manufacturing sector. accordingly, countries which have a relatively large manufacturing sector are more exposed to the current slowdown, with germany a case in point. the longer the weakness in manufacturing persists, the greater the risk that other sectors of the economy will be affected by the slowdown as well. risks to the growth outlook remain on the downside overall. headline inflation remains well below 2 %, while inflation excluding the more volatile food and energy components has been hovering around 1 % for an extended period of time. this indicates that the weaker economic outlook may imply a delay in the pass - through of wages to prices. firms are absorbing increases in labour costs in their profit margins rather than passing them on to customers. meanwhile, indicators of inflation expectations are at low levels. although the likelihood of deflation remains limited, market expectations of inflation over the medium term are settling around values that are not consistent with our inflation aim. inflation is currently expected to average 1. 2 % in 2019, 1. 0 % in 2020 and 1. 5 % in 2021, which is well below the governing council ’ s medium - term aim of below, but close to, 2 %. so when the governing council met in mid - september to decide on monetary policy, it was confronted with a more rapid and extended slowdown than previously anticipated, persistent and prominent downside risks to the growth outlook, and a further delay in the convergence of inflation towards the ecb ’

yves mersch : opening remarks opening remarks by mr yves mersch, member of the executive board of the european central bank and vice - chair of the supervisory board of the european central bank, at the “ getting to know the eu institutions and organisations in luxembourg ” event, luxembourg, 11 november 2019. * * * the press is an important medium for the ecb to communicate and explain our decisions and policies to the wider public. i am happy for today ’ s opportunity to extend the usual exchange with the “ ecb watchers ” to brussels - based journalists. while i will devote most of this session to answering any questions you may have, i want to start by outlining the ecb ’ s role and its functions. i will then briefly touch upon challenges to the european economic outlook that explain the ecb ’ s latest monetary policy measures, before concluding with the priorities for economic and monetary union from the ecb ’ s perspective. the ecb and its functions the primary task of the ecb is to maintain price stability, defined by the governing council as an inflation rate of “ below, but close to, 2 % over the medium term ”. maintaining price stability supports sustainable economic growth and helps to create jobs and improve the living standards of euro area citizens. in addition to defining and implementing the monetary policy for the euro area, we have a number of other tasks under the eu treaties, including promoting the smooth operation of payment systems. we have an advisory role on european and national legislation in our areas of competence and we are frequently consulted on such legislation. we are also involved in the euro area accession process, preparing regular reports on the progress made towards the maastricht convergence criteria by the member states expected to eventually adopt the euro. in addition, we help manage the european exchange rate mechanism and ensure non - euro area member states can participate smoothly in the banking union should they wish to join. in 2014, the ecb was tasked with supervising about 120 significant banks in the euro area and it is responsible for the effective and consistent functioning of the single supervisory mechanism as a whole. to ensure that the ecb acts in the best interest of european citizens, we have strong safeguards in place to verify that we act in accordance with our mandate and that our independence is protected. with regards to our mandate, we are subject to judicial review by the court of justice of the european union and we are accountable to the european parliament. to emphasise our independence, members of the governing council are