2. it must have a price performance that is sustainable and an average inflation rate that does not exceed by more than one and a half percentage points that of the three best - performing eu countries in terms of price stability ; 3. it must have had an average nominal long - term interest rate that does not exceed by more than two percentage points that of the three best - performing eu countries in terms of price stability ; 4. its national currency must have participated in the exchange rate mechanism ii for at least two years and thus have respected the defined fluctuation margins of the currency towards the euro ; 5. it should ensure that it meets the requirements of legal convergence. bis central bankers ’ speeches in its regular convergence reports, the european central bank has emphasised that these criteria be met in a sustainable manner. with regard to romania, achieving an environment conducive to sustainable convergence requires, inter alia, a stability - oriented monetary policy and the strict implementation of its fiscal consolidation plans. let me now return to the euro exhibition itself. the euro exhibition has been on display at many locations throughout the eu, so far including bratislava, barcelona, rome, berlin, frankfurt, luxembourg, warsaw and tallinn. after bucharest, it will continue its journey across europe to paris, sofia and athens. the main objective of the euro exhibition is to give citizens of all ages the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the euro. visitors will have the chance to explore subjects ranging from the history of money to the production of euro banknotes. in addition, they will be able to learn how to check the security features of euro banknotes through the many interactive displays. as you walk around the exhibition, you will no doubt recognise the images of bridges that feature on the back of the euro banknotes. these bridges symbolise communication between the people of europe, and between europe and the rest of the world. they also represent the connection between the past and present, and symbolise a common european future. the diversity of europe is also reflected on the national sides of the euro coins, which depict national icons and symbols representing the national heritage and culture of each euro area country. the euro exhibition also takes the younger generations into consideration. in the kids ’ corner, children can play the educational computer games, learn more about the features of euro banknotes from the interactive displays or follow the story of anna and alex as they catch counterfeiters. for those of you here who have children, this is a good opportunity for them to

##s the political rationale for monetary union – that all members are better off over time inside the union than they would be outside – it also weakens its longterm cohesion. that has negative spillovers for all member economies. it is in this context that several of my colleagues on the ecb executive board have recently called for stronger common governance at the european level over economic policies. 1 the ability of all countries to adjust well to shocks is not only key for the delivery of our mandate, it is vital for the integrity of the currency. this is an area of legitimate interest for the central bank which is the guardian of that currency. however, it is important to stress that the ecb ’ s interest in structural reforms should not be misinterpreted as a call for centralisation along a “ one size fits all ” model. we do not need all euro area countries to adopt identical structural reforms. what we need is a framework that takes into account both how countries differ based on their national conditions, and how they are similar by virtue of being in a monetary union. within those parameters there are various combinations of country - specific institutions that can produce smooth adjustment. let me illustrate what i mean by focusing on one example : labour markets. theory suggests that, in a monetary union, there are certain principles that should apply to labour markets across countries. for instance, without the option of exchange rate devaluation, maintaining wages in line with productivity over time is thought to be central to sustaining competitiveness and avoiding painful internal devaluations. ensuring that wages can respond to changes in labour demand or supply is also seen as a key element in limiting the employment cost of shocks. if firms have the scope to cut costs on the intensive margin – i. e. wages, bonuses and working time – they are less likely to cut costs through the extensive margin, that is, labour shedding. wage - productivity links have indeed proven to be an important factor in countries ’ external positions. france, for example, has experienced large losses in export market shares since the start of monetary union in 1999, and part of the reason for this is that labour market institutions have allowed wages and productivity to de - link across firms. micro - level data show that wages have grown almost as much in the least productive french firms over the last decade as they have in the most productive. by contrast, in germany there is clear wage dispersion according to firm productivity. for instance, see draghi,