and national authorities ), they are still relevant to the provision of liquidity to euro area markets over the longer term. 1 uk - based investment banks are also key providers of advisory and financing services related to securities issuance, m & a activity and syndicated lending to euro area clients. they play an active role in debt and equity issuance for euro area non - financial corporations, including book running and underwriting services. between 2012 and 2018, almost half of all debt and equity issuance for euro area non - financial corporations was carried out by global banks serving our market from london. our reliance on london also stems from the fact that, in some cases, the city represents a gateway to global financial markets for euro area financial and non - financial firms, allowing them to tap into global capital and liquidity pools. in other areas, however, reliance on london is quite limited. for instance, uk - domiciled banks play a marginal role in direct lending to euro area households and non - financial companies. had it not been for brexit, certain global and regional trends might even have led to an increase in the eu ’ s reliance on the city of london as a centre for market - based finance. indeed, the 1 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches balance between banks and non - bank financial institutions in the eu has been evolving in recent years : although still very much bank - based, our economy is increasingly financed by non - bank institutions. in the euro area, total assets held by non - banks have almost doubled over the last ten years, growing from €23 trillion in 2008 to €45 trillion in june 2019. non - banks currently account for around 55 % of the euro area financial sector. their fast growth reflects their expanding role in financing the euro area real economy. whereas in 2008 non - banks accounted for 14 % of the euro area financial sector ’ s loans to non - financial corporations, that share roughly doubled in a decade. non - banks provide a steady net flow of financing to non - financial corporations through the purchase of debt securities. regulatory decisions and economic drivers will affect the status quo these examples give a sense of the level of integration between uk and continental financial markets, in particular for certain complex and sophisticated financial services linked to derivatives markets and investment banking activities. however, brexit will change this status quo and a degree of decoupling is likely. it is difficult to make firm predictions about the extent to which our two financial systems may drift apart or remain

, under the current commission proposals – would be too heavy for the country. there is already a debt rule in the maastricht treaty! and experience demonstrates that it is necessary to enforce it, because excessive debt might trigger instability. a simple calculation shows that, assuming an inflation rate of below 2 %, but close to 2 %, as in the ecb ’ s definition of price stability, and a reasonable average yearly real gdp growth rate – for instance, slightly over 1 % – a balanced budget – which is the “ normal ” position according to the stability and growth pact – might reduce the debt outstanding as a proportion of gdp by more than 3 % each year for a debt level of around 120 % of gdp. by the way, the imf also says a reduction of public debt in a number of advanced economies is urgent. a balanced budget is the objective of the stability pact, but some euro area countries have never even come close. and the imf, while recommending debt consolidation, admits it will be very painful in the early years. we must take fully into account the confidence channel. when a country moves in the direction of fiscal soundness, this is not only good for growth from a medium and long - term perspective, but it might also be beneficial for growth in the short term. because it enhances confidence in segments of the economy that had lost some of their confidence, and that is good for consumption, investment and job creation. people would not engage in more consumption, entrepreneurs would not invest actively, and savers would not be forthcoming if fiscal stability was impaired or threatened. other choices could be painful. the bundesbank president, axel weber, some days ago hinted that a rise in interest rates could not be as far away as markets seem to think. as you know, i never comment on remarks made by fellow members of the governing council. what is important, of course, is that there is only one single currency ; there is one governing council, only one monetary policy decision, and one president, who is also the porte - parole of the governing council. at the last ecb press conference, i said very clearly that current interest rates are appropriate. the needle in our compass is price stability – annual inflation of less than 2 % but close to 2 % – and on this we have a very, very remarkable track record : a yearly average price increase of 1. 97 % in the 11½ years that the ecb has been in charge of monetary