as recognised in the draft report, the ecb ’ s monetary policy – which is designed to fulfil our primary objective of maintaining price stability – has continued to be successful in anchoring inflation expectations at levels consistent with price stability, despite a number of challenges, in particular relating to the continued strong surge in oil prices until the most recent period of time. as already emphasised on several occasions, such anchoring is a prerequisite for monetary policy to make an ongoing contribution towards supporting sustainable economic growth and job creation in the euro area, fully in line with article 105 ( 1 ) of the ec treaty. in this respect, let me emphasise that the ecb ’ s open and transparent communication is a key element in guiding market expectations. in particular, my introductory statement at the press conference after the first governing council meeting each month provides a clear view, on the part of the governing council, on the current monetary policy stance in real time. hence, we make the outcome of our deliberations public. as such, the introductory statement is comparable with what other central banks call “ summary minutes ”. in 2005, the ecb ’ s monetary policy operated in an environment of increasingly improving economic conditions. while real gdp growth remained moderate in the first half of the year, in an environment of heightened uncertainties surrounding domestic demand, the pace of economic activity gradually strengthened during the second half of the year, from around 1. 2 % year - on - year on average in the first half of 2005 to around 1. 7 % year - on - year on average in the second half. overall, real gdp in the euro area grew by 1. 4 %. as regards price developments, annual hicp inflation averaged 2. 2 % in 2005, compared to 2. 1 % in each of the two preceding years. while annual hicp inflation eased to 2. 0 % in the first half of 2005, mainly reflecting base effects, hicp inflation rates accelerated to levels significantly above 2 % during the second half, reaching a peak of 2. 6 % in september, mainly on the back of substantial increases in energy prices. thus, reviewing the ecb ’ s monetary policy decisions in 2005 and early 2006, it is useful to split this time period in two parts. in the first half of 2005, against the background of subdued inflation developments and with inflation expectations for the euro area solidly anchored at levels in line with price stability, the governing council concluded that it remained appropriate to keep interest

to these discussions, it is worth recalling why we are here. the words of mr. kofi annan, the former un secretary general, come to mind. he said this : “ where once the poor were commonly seen as passive victims, microfinance recognizes that poor people are remarkable reservoirs of energy and knowledge. and while the lack of financial services is a sign of poverty, today it is also understood as an untapped opportunity to create markets, bring people in from the margins and give them the tools with which to help themselves. ” i believe we will continue to see massive changes in rapid bursts. in the process, the goal should be to help as many people as we can emerge stronger and more productive members of the human ecosystem. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches