but we should not forget that some divergence is quite normal. for instance, with countries still in a process of catching - up in terms of productivity and living standards, there will be some natural and even warranted divergence in growth and inflation in the course of this process. while the single monetary policy is determined by developments in the euro area as a whole, looking also at the performance in the individual member states is necessary to gain a better understanding of area - wide developments.... and the outlook for the french economy with this in mind, let me now say something about the outlook for the french economy - and to point out that it is indeed favourable. the cyclical developments in france combine moderate inflation, below the euro area average, and strong economic growth, above the euro area average. towards the end of the decade, france has thus contributed to a great extent to stabilising the prospects of the euro area economy. in particular last year, and in contrast with other large economies of the area, the french economy has proved resilient in terms of activity and stable in terms of prices. looking at the headline figures for 1999, an estimated 3. 2 % real gdp growth for the fourth quarter and a 0. 6 % annual average increase in consumer prices, the conclusion can be drawn that economic agents in france have so far successfully adapted to the new euro - wide macroeconomic context associated with the single monetary policy. with a view to the near future, available indicators and forecasts suggest similarly favourable prospects for france as for the euro area as a whole. according to recent results from industrial and consumer surveys, both entrepreneurs and households remain confident about their short - term prospects. the optimism of the latter is best reflected in the historically high level of consumer confidence and stems partly from the on - going improvement of the situation on the labour market. household consumption, which has been resilient in 1999 despite the temporary economic slowdown, is therefore expected to continue to grow rapidly this year. as far as enterprises are concerned, business confidence is in line with the historically high levels reached in 1998 and entrepreneurs have kept on signalling well - filled order books. with capacity utilisation rates some 2 percentage points above their long - term average, the overall positive environment can be expected to contribute to dynamic investment expenditure. this would be reinforced by other major determinants for investment. irrespective of the positive influence of monetary policy on financing conditions, companies ’ financial positions can indeed be expected

have seen in banking, a macroprudential approach may be useful to lean against the build - up of cyclical vulnerabilities or to address concentration risk. but we mustn't lose sight of how complex and diverse the nbfi ecosystem is. and the difference in how systemic risk propagates. in the nbfi sector this is likely driven more by activities and collective actions, and less by the size of specific entities, as it is in banking. and so, macroprudential policy for nbfi might differ in important ways from the approach used in banking. a further consideration for macroprudential policy is the need to enhance our capabilities in the area of data and analytical tools. the data landscape for nbfi is not as well developed as for banks. to improve this, the fsb is exploring ways to enhance the availability, quality and usability of data. we are also working on the development of additional metrics and new analytical tools to monitor nbfi vulnerabilities on an ongoing basis. for example, stress testing of funds is an important topic for which the fsb will organise a workshop in july, jointly with iosco. lastly, we know that macroprudential policy has important cross border implications, including in terms of reciprocity and home - host considerations. these call for international cooperation. the fsb is well placed to support efforts to achieve this, working alongside key standard setters, like iosco. 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches let me wrap up. we have seen several market incidents recently. incidents that were due to vulnerabilities in the nbfi sector. and though the incidents were overcome, in some cases relying on extraordinary central bank interventions, the underlying vulnerabilities and the amplifiers of stress are still largely in place. this means, for example, that investment funds remain vulnerable to further liquidity strains. and so, it is critical to finalise and implement international reforms to enhance nbfi resilience. thereafter, we will be well placed to assess whether any regulatory gaps remain and to move forward toward a macroprudential approach. today's conference provides an important opportunity to discuss what that could look like. this fantastic building we are gathered in, is set on a solid foundation. with a resilient –'irishweatherproof'– structure. and it is actually two buildings – unified around an atrium that draws in the light. very