ignazio visco : introductory remarks - annual conference of the global forum on productivity introductory remarks by mr ignazio visco, governor of the bank of italy, at the annual conference of the global forum on productivity, co - organised by the italian g20 presidency, venice, 9 july 2021. * * * it is a pleasure to join minister franco and secretary general cormann in welcoming you to this important initiative, promoted by the oecd global forum on productivity together with the italian presidency of the group of twenty ( g20 ) to discuss recent developments in productivity and the challenges ahead the oecd has a long and outstanding reputation for producing high quality studies on productivity and the determinants of cross - country differences in growth performances. as chief economist of the organization, i had the privilege and honour of contributing to this research programme more than 20 years ago. at that time, our efforts were directed towards obtaining a deeper understanding of the “ new economy ” and of the impact of information technologies ( ict ) on society at large. to this end, the oecd significantly intensified its research activity, the collection and diffusion of comparable cross - country data and benchmarking analyses aimed at identifying best practices among member countries. the lessons learnt back then were published in several reports, starting from the book on “ the sources of economic growth in oecd countries ”, issued in 2003, and the various editions of “ going for growth ”, which are still highly relevant today. the new research presented at this edition of the global forum on productivity confirms that, analogously to the case of “ the new economy ” debate in the late 1990s, obstacles to the diffusion of new technologies play a critical role in explaining the disappointing growth performance experienced at least since the global financial crisis. in particular, they help explain why, despite the new digital revolution, the dynamics of aggregate productivity have been so sluggish. to be fully exploited, the new digital technologies require adequate availability and composition of skills in the workforce, good managerial practices and, often, appropriate economies of scale. these factors are creating a divide between a few fast growing large firms and many small ones struggling to keep up, which is preventing our economies from taking full advantage from technological progress. these are critical issues, whose relevance can hardly be overstated. the troubled macroeconomic context in which the digital revolution has been taking place since the global financial crisis has also played a role in explaining the stagnation of productivity. we have learnt

sluggishness of the real economy : without a sustained recovery, inflation risks being pushed well below the target, opening up a scenario that would be difficult for monetary policy to counteract and should therefore be avoided. tommaso zerbi opened the italian constituent assembly meeting of 19 may 1947, during which article 47 of the constitution was discussed and approved, recalling ‘ the cry of millions and millions of small italian savers, the tragedy – without exaggeration – of our entire generation of small savers, who in the last 30 years or so have seen the purchasing power of the lira fall to one one - hundred - and - fortieth of its value in 1913 or to one thirty - fifth of its value in the period between the first and the second world war ’ ( see constituent assembly, session of 19 may 1947, p. 4025 ; only in italian ). 4. financial stability financial stability is the third pillar in the protection of savings. financial crises pose a severe threat to savers because of the destruction of wealth they bring about. 18 banks over the previous decade, italy ’ s banking system suffered the consequences of two recessions within a few years. between 2008 and 2014, gdp fell by 9 per cent, leading to an increase in business bankruptcies and unemployment. 19 non - performing loans rose to 10 per cent of total loans. banks suffered sizeable losses, which in many cases resulted in outright banking crises. that is now a distant memory. the banking system is currently well capitalized and profitable. the stock market valuations of the main financial intermediaries exceed their book values ( figure 4 ), signalling investor confidence in banks ’ ability to generate income in the future. these improvements reflect the efficiency gains achieved by financial intermediaries and the strengthening of prudential rules, as well as the favourable conditions of recent years. 20 public aid during the pandemic crisis, including the expansion of state guarantees on loans to small and medium - sized enterprises, played an important in italy, the global financial crisis of 2007 - 09 led to a drop in equity prices of almost 70 per cent, followed by a slow and partial recovery. the sovereign debt crisis caused further losses, coupled with a sharp fall in house prices. in that period, yearly bankruptcies doubled to more than 15, 000 ; the unemployment rate rose by over 6 percentage points, to 12. 9 per cent. in recent years, the european financial system has been characterized by ample liquidity