##down, but one milder than anticipated. however, uncertainty over its medium - term growth rate persists bearing in mind the authorities ’ intention to lead the chinese economy towards a more sustainable and more domestic consumption - led model. the consequences of the slowdown on the world economy, mainly via the effect of the decline in commodities prices on exporting countries ’ economies, are so far projected to be limited. the euro area the moderate recovery in activity continues in the euro area, underpinned by the expansion of private consumption, against a more uncertain external background for industrial production, exports and business investment. in the third quarter, gdp growth in the area was 0. 3 %, 0. 1 pp down on the second quarter. the buoyancy of private consumption and the somewhat more expansionary behaviour of investment were the main factors behind this performance. growth projections for 2015 by the main international agencies stand at around 1. 5 %. bis central bankers ’ speeches the spanish economy the expansion in the spanish economy extended into the third quarter of 2015, with spain notably one of the highest - growth economies in the euro area. on the latest national accounts data, gdp grew in the third quarter of this year by 0. 8 % in quarter - on - quarter terms, with the year - on - year rate standing at 3. 4 %. this increase in activity appears to be underpinned by the strength of private domestic demand, while the contribution of the net external balance is estimated to be moderately negative, albeit against a backdrop of quickening quarter - on - quarter rates in both exports and imports. household spending is notably buoyant, on the back of the favourable trend in employment, improved financing conditions, the expansion in real disposable income attributable to the fall in oil prices and the recent fiscal measures. business activity is expected to have continued improving during the third quarter, driven by the strength of final demand and favourable financial conditions. the business investment indicators have also remained generally firm throughout 2015. allow me now briefly to address employment, the external sector, growth projections and the factors of risk for our economy in 2016. and before drawing conclusions, i shall also refer to the strengths of our banking system and the challenges facing it. employment the employment figures remain on a positive path. according to official labour force survey figures, numbers employed grew by 182, 000 in the third quarter, placing the cumulative figure over the past 12 months at 545, 000 people. this figure en

bostjan vasle : introducing the euro in times of high inflation - case of croatia opening speech by mr bostjan vasle, governor of bank of slovenia, at the lecture " introducing the euro in times of high inflation - case of croatia ", ljubljana, 20 april 2023. * * * the spoken word applies. dear ladies and gentlemen, dear guests, welcome to the second lecture of foreign central bank governors this year. after hosting the governor of the central bank of estonia in march, today we have with us the governor of the croatian national bank, boris vuji. just a few months after croatia became the 20th country to join the euro area, governor vuji will present croatia's path to and the first experiences with adoption of the euro. with croatia's entry into the euro area this year, the euro has become the official currency for 347 million people. euro area enlargement adds to the role of the euro and the european economy, which is particularly important at a time of increased geopolitical tensions. the euro remains the second most widely used currency for trade invoicing, crossborder lending and foreign exchange trading, and holds the second largest share of global foreign exchange reserves, after the us dollar. even at a time of high inflation, support for the single currency among the eu population remains high, at over 70 % according to this winter's eurobarometer. with support at 87 %, slovenians are among the biggest supporters of the euro. * * * while we can draw several parallels between the introduction of the euro in slovenia in 2007 and in croatia this year, there are also some interesting differences. ( i ) slovenia was the first of the so - called new eu member states to adopt the euro. the introduction of the euro was accompanied by broad support in politics and the professional community, which contributed to an exceptionally high 72 % acceptance of the euro among the population. 1 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches the fact that slovenians, as savers and consumers, were well familiar with the euro also boded well. in addition, it is worth highlighting the importance of thorough tree - year preparations for the euro adoption, in terms of technical, managerial and communication aspects. in croatia, there were more divisions and doubts about euro adoption, which made the determination and public engagement of the central bank and the government even more significant. ( ii ) for slovenia, one of the major challenges in meeting the criteria for joining the euro