mario draghi : ecb press conference – introductory statement introductory statement by mr mario draghi, president of the european central bank, and mr vitor constancio, vice - president of the european central bank, paris, 2 october 2013. * * * ladies and gentlemen, the vice - president and i are very pleased to welcome you to our press conference. i would like to thank governor noyer for his kind hospitality and express our special gratitude to his staff for the excellent organisation of today ’ s meeting of the governing council. we will now report on the outcome of today ’ s meeting, which was also attended by the commission vice - president, mr rehn. based on our regular economic and monetary analyses, we decided to keep the key ecb interest rates unchanged. incoming information and analysis have further underpinned our previous assessment. underlying price pressures in the euro area are expected to remain subdued over the medium term. in keeping with this picture, monetary and, in particular, credit dynamics remain subdued. inflation expectations for the euro area continue to be firmly anchored in line with our aim of maintaining inflation rates below, but close to, 2 % over the medium term. at the same time, real gdp growth in the second quarter was positive, after six quarters of negative output growth, and confidence indicators up to september confirm the expected gradual improvement in economic activity from low levels. our monetary policy stance continues to be geared towards maintaining the degree of monetary accommodation warranted by the outlook for price stability and promoting stable money market conditions. it thereby provides support to a gradual recovery in economic activity. looking ahead, our monetary policy stance will remain accommodative for as long as necessary, in line with the forward guidance provided in july. the governing council confirms that it expects the key ecb interest rates to remain at present or lower levels for an extended period of time. this expectation continues to be based on an unchanged overall subdued outlook for inflation extending into the medium term, given the broad - based weakness in the economy and subdued monetary dynamics. in the period ahead, we will monitor all incoming information on economic and monetary developments and assess any impact on the medium - term outlook for price stability. with regard to money market conditions, we will remain particularly attentive to developments which may have implications for the stance of monetary policy and are ready to consider all available instruments. let me now explain our assessment in greater detail, starting with the economic analysis. following six quarters of negative output growth, euro

: “ measure twice, cut once. ” by continuing our site, agree yet to our of ause and privacy statement. but youas canwe learn more about we use cookies by fast forward to touse today, andyou i have to terms pursue career in carpentry. prepare for ahow post - libor world, the same adage runs through my mind. we must take great care, because the decisions made today will determine reviewing our privacy statement. if the libor transition is ultimately successful. the past decade has shown us that the problem with using libor as a benchmark interest rate has been an extremely risky one to have — and to solve. 3 it's important that we focus not only on making the transition, but also on getting the transition right. we've learned how challenging and costly it is to move away from a widely used unsound reference rate. it's essential that we move forward in a way that ensures that we do not have to go through such a transition again in our lifetimes. i know i wouldn't wish that on anyone. a foundation for the future this adage has many applications, but it's especially important to keep in mind when laying a foundation — because the foundation is everything. back when i lived in california, we bought a victorian house built in the 1890s. the attraction of the house was that it had lots of rooms and spaces for the family to live. but, the existing foundation was crumbling and not even attached to the house. in a major earthquake, the house would have quickly toppled over. we had a new foundation installed, and my mother asked to see before and after pictures. i responded that one picture would do since all the work was done underground and out of sight. the difference was that this house would last another 100 years, while the old house would have lasted only until the next earthquake. i see the current juncture in the transition away from libor to a new reference rate regime in much the same way. we have seen the development of several reference rates that may meet various needs, including creditsensitive rates. 4 separately, the arrc just announced the indicators that it will consider in recommending a forward - looking secured overnight financing rate ( sofr ) term rate, which with continued market progress, it believes can be achieved relatively soon. 5 these are valuable steps in the transition to the new post - libor world — but in my house metaphor, these represent the