, who have driven work on this project forward, and without whom this event here, today could not have taken place. so what are the objectives of this seminar from our point of view? • first, it should be a platform for an exchange of views between central banks of the mediterranean region and central bankers of the eurosystem. this seminar should enhance the eurosystem ’ s knowledge of the economies of our mediterranean neighbours, and provide the central banks of the region with an opportunity to become more familiar with the eurosystem. • second, this seminar is not a one - off event. we see the potential for regular and active dialogue in the region. therefore, it is also an opportunity to elaborate on the main features of future cooperation. • third, but by no means least, this seminar offers a unique opportunity to strengthen professional and personal relationships between all central bankers of the region. part of the region is haunted by conflicts, which impact the economies. all the more reason, i believe, for us as central bankers to develop professional relations and encourage active and constructive dialogue. i would like to encourage all of us to make the best use of this opportunity by participating actively in the seminar with frank, open contributions. i look forward very much to our discussions. thank you.

. 8 %, while bank loans to non - financial companies have increased by 3. 1 %. as overall financing conditions have eased and credit growth increased, improvements in the euro area ’ s economic performance have followed. indeed, the current recovery is showing considerable resilience, which to a large extent reflects the fact that domestic demand is the primary driver of growth. at the same time, there are encouraging signs that both global growth prospects and world trade are strengthening and may well act as tailwinds to further support the recovery. monetary policy is playing a central role in supporting consumption : lower interest rates are ensuring favourable borrowing conditions and encouraging households to bring forward durable consumption as well as firms ’ investment. consumption of durable goods has rebounded in recent years, and especially in countries where credit was previously very tight. while investment has responded more slowly, monetary policy is helping create the conditions for a stronger investment revival through its overall effect on the economy. the euro area cyclical recovery is gaining momentum, broadening across sectors and countries. while the economic outlook is now better than it has been for many years, downside risks remain, albeit less pronounced than they once were. the firming of the recovery has not yet translated into a durable strengthening of inflation dynamics. headline inflation has increased, but for the most part this reflects rising energy and food price inflation. underlying inflation pressures continue to remain subdued. according to our latest projections, inflation is expected to move towards levels below, but close to, 2 % over the forecast horizon. we are not yet sufficiently confident that inflation will converge to levels consistent with our aim in a durable manner. inflation dynamics still remain reliant on the very substantial degree of monetary accommodation which prevails. against this background, the governing council has reaffirmed its monetary policy stance, including its forward guidance, in order to secure a sustained convergence in inflation towards our aim objective. 1 the first tltros took place in september 2014. in september 2014, the ecb announced the launch of the cbpp3 and the abspp. 2 for more details see “ the transmission of the ecb ’ s recent non - standard monetary policy measures ” ecb economic bulletin, issue 7 / 2015. 4 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches