increases in participation rates and employment. and this appears even more urgent if we consider that, over the same period, europe ’ s growth performance has been constrained by its low rate of population growth and the ageing of its society. as regards demographic trends, the working age population of the euro area grew by an average of 0. 4 % per year over the period 1996 - 2006, compared with 1. 3 % in the united european commission – ameco database. european commission – ameco database. eurostat. states. 4 these demographic trends therefore account for 0. 9 percentage point of the euro area - us growth differential, “ in favour ” of the us. taken together, labour utilisation and demographic trends can explain 0. 5 percentage point of the difference between the growth rates of the united states and the euro area, “ in favour ” of the us. on the basis of a 1. 1 percentage point difference in annual average growth between the us and the euro area over the period 1996 - 2006, the remaining differential of 0. 6 % for real gdp growth indeed stems from annual average labour productivity growth of 1. 3 % in the euro area and 1. 9 % in the united states. it is true that the positive labour supply shock over the past decade might have contributed to the disappointing productivity growth seen in the euro area. however, standard growth accounting analyses show that developments in labour supply are only part of the story. the slowdown in labour productivity growth can be attributed to a large extent to a marked deceleration in total factor productivity. those countries that have tended to compensate for the positive labour supply shock by increasing investment growth and / or exploiting the potential efficiency gains offered by new technology in particular have enjoyed stronger labour productivity growth. for instance, over the period 1996 - 2005 the direct contribution of ict to labour productivity growth, as measured by the contribution of ict capital services, has in the united states been roughly double that observed in the euro area ( 0. 63 percentage point in the united states, compared with 0. 37 percentage point in the euro area ). similarly, hourly labour productivity growth in ict manufacturing and service sectors 5 grew by an average of 12. 6 % and 6. 5 % in the united states and the euro area respectively over that period. 6 there could, of course, be many reasons for this decline in total factor productivity growth rates, and this conference has been useful in shedding light on some explanatory factors.

##rase : “ natura finis magistra ”. [ 5 ] in fact, nature makes finance thrive. this is what ultimately needs to become fully embedded in the work of central banks, supervisors, regulators and international standard setting bodies, within their mandate. because nature - related risks are part of our mandate. thank you for your attention. 1. university of cambridge institute for sustainability leadership ( 2021 ), handbook for nature - related financial risks : key concepts and a framework for identification, march. 2. de nederlandsche bank ( 2020 ), indebted to nature : exploring biodiversity risks for the dutch financial sector, june ; de nederlandsche bank ( 2019 ), values at risk? sustainability risks and goals in the dutch financial sector ; and banque de france ( 2021 ), “ a silent spring for the financial system? exploring biodiversity – related financial risks in france ”, working paper series, no 826, august. 3. ecb ( 2020 ), guide on climate - related and environmental risks - supervisory expectations relating to risk management and disclosure, november. 4. dasgupta, p. ( 2021 ), the economics of biodiversity : the dasgupta review, hm treasury, london, february. 5. the word “ finance ” originates from the latin “ finis ” meaning “ limit ” or “ end ” and was first used in its current context in french in the sense of settling debt.