for instance, i learned that not even typhoon mario stopped the elimination rounds for the best finance teams. equally important, we value the agreement of the schools and finex to include ethical practices and social responsibility in the education of our finance students. i highlight this point because the natural pursuit of fostering a healthy bottom line should always be within the parameters of ethical and social responsibility standards. at work, market practitioners, leaders of banks and financial institutions have the power and the responsibility to strengthen the value of good governance among their employees by walking their talk. for institutions to be able to stay in their respective businesses for the long haul – whether they are private or government, three attributes are indispensable : excellence, integrity and good corporate governance. indeed, excellence, integrity and good values should constantly be a part of our life wherever we are, whether we are at home, in school, or at work. again, to the finalists in this 16th icfc, i salute you for being the best that you can be. while prizes go to those who top this competition, in my book, you are all winners. serve our country and our people well by developing into world - class leaders who are ethical and socially - responsible. i also thank the organizers from finex, jpmorgan chase and the other partners for making finance education and this annual icfc a truly exciting event for our schools and students across the country. this event reminds me of what the late american president john f. kennedy once said, and i quote : “ let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream, which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation. ” ladies and gentlemen, it is in this spirit that i ask that we continue to work together to nurture excellence in finance education. hanggang sa muli! mabuhay ang ating mahal na bansang pilipinas! mabuhay po tayong lahat! bis central bankers ’ speeches

. but what has been most effective to improve market confidence has been the very existence of the frob as a backstop, assuring investors and lenders that, from the entry into force of the royal decree - law, all spanish banks are, de facto, operating with levels of core capital exceeding 8 – 10 %. the entry of private capital will require savings banks to undertake a definitive and clear professionalisation of their management. this requirement is fortunate because it is a necessary condition for preventing a repeat of past events. thus it is not only the regional authorities who must avoid any action which may deflect banks from their essential objective of serving households and firms ; also, those who are now at the helm of savings banks must hasten the reform of their corporate governance because very likely the market will not lend again to anyone unable to give it an assurance of professionalism and corporate governance on a par with that of commercial banks. going back to the economy, we must be patient. immediately ahead of us, the adjustment phase will continue. true, there has been a notable correction in some of the main imbalances in recent years. but it is still too early to say that the spanish economy is at a stage where it can once again resume robust growth. further effort will be needed to digest the excesses of the housing boom, and it will be some time before net job creation gains momentum, unless ambitious reforms are implemented. the structural reforms launched in the past year represent positive progress. at present it is essential to persevere with these measures – such as the fiscal consolidation process – and maintain the pace of reform, tackling the reforms needed in areas which are essential for competitiveness and for boosting the spanish economy ’ s potential growth. the key issue now is not to stop, but to push ahead with the reforms, with all of them, including of course the restructuring of the savings banks, which has been the subject of my speech. but most important, due to it being an area which sets us furthest apart from other developed countries, is the reform of the labour market institutions which are the cause of the our economy ’ s main problem. our labour market framework makes us unique in comparison with other countries : it hampers job creation and encourages the use of job destruction as a mechanism for adjustment. here it will not be enough, when the reform has been passed, to say “ it ’ s a move in the right direction ”. in this connection, not only the