michelle w bowman : brief remarks - fed listens event on transitioning to the post - pandemic economy brief remarks by ms michelle w bowman, member of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at the fed listens event on transitioning to the postpandemic economy, boston, massachusetts, 31 may 2023. * * * it is very good to be here, and to be part of this fed listens event and discussion about the effects of the pandemic experience on the u. s. economy, highlighting challenges in the labor and housing markets. while there are many ways to think about the impact of these effects, i find it helpful to consider both the cyclical or temporary factors and those that are structural and longer term. as monetary policymakers, we are primarily focused on the cyclical mattersmeaning how the pandemic and the measures taken to address it complicated accomplishing our dual - mandate objectives of maximum employment and stable prices. making the best monetary policy decisions over the business cycle requires distinguishing between temporary effects and lasting, structural changes. today's agenda includes the employment recovery following the high unemployment during the spring of 2020 leading to the current tight labor market. today's labor market strength reflects policy decisions taken in light of the pandemic experience, including the widespread lockdowns, reliance upon remote work, and other factors that may have structurally altered the labor market. i am very much looking forward to the discussion. i also look forward to learning from the perspectives of today's participants from around new england about the issues that will be discussed today. i find it especially helpful to participate in regional discussions to broaden my understanding of economic conditions throughout the country. this local perspective is one of the great advantages of the federal reserve system's regional structure, and of the fed listens initiative, which complements the board's efforts to understand national economic conditions. in 2019, the board launched fed listens with a year of listening sessions with the public focused on monetary policy and, specifically, on how the federal open market committee uses interest rates and other tools to promote a healthy economy. while data can tell us a lot, learning about the experiences behind those data helps bring economic data to life for me and for my colleagues. through fed listens and other engagements with the public, we hear about how americans are faring in the economy and about how our policy decisions affect individuals, businesses, and communities. so our efforts to enhance

, we can see a strong dispersion of npl ratios across countries. the highest npl ratios are present in those member states that were hit hardest by the economic crisis that followed the financial crisis after 2007. the high stock of npls ties up operational capacity of the affected banks, it involves legal as well as administrative costs, and it weighs on the capacity of those banks to extend new loans to realise profits and to support economic recovery. 4. how to cope ladies and gentleman, the financial world is clearly confronted with significant change and uncertainty. and many in the financial world perceive this to be a change for the worse. there are no easy solutions. the brexit negotiations will take time and uncertainty will be with us just as long. turning back regulatory achievements to provide relief from a perceived burden is not an option. as for the challenges posed by digitalisation, sticking to business as usual will not suffice. the same is true for the low - interest - rate environment : hoping for relief from a change in monetary policy won ’ t be enough. clearly, banks need to adapt, and indeed they have already begun. any long - term strategy for profitable banking needs to be built on its value added for customers, business partners and society. in times like these, supervisors need to be especially vigilant in monitoring financial institutions and ensuring that they do not take on excessive risks. what supervisors will not do is attempt to be management consultants for banks. difficult though the times may be, and however numerous and complex the problems may seem, it ’ s important to keep a clear mind and a steady hand. having a holistic and encompassing understanding of the current challenges does not mean that there are broad encompassing solutions available. we will succeed only if we refrain from falling for sweeping answers that promise to solve all the issues at once. that ’ s why it ’ s so important to have institutes like the iepe that enable us to get together and thoroughly discuss both the 4 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches challenges and the strategies needed to overcome them. and i am looking forward to having this conversation with you now. if we approach and tackle our current problems one by one, we will see that any change is manageable – both in the financial and in the real world. thank you for your attention. 5 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches