specific monetary policy measures are designed. but undoubtedly the eurosystem ’ s determined response contributed to overcoming the economic fallout of the pandemic. 3 conclusion another achievement, and one that brings us to the subject matter of our conference, has been the establishment of a high - level task force on central bank digital currency. the crisis may have changed the overarching agenda, but the topic of digital payment solutions is as cutting edge as it ever was. 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches indeed, the pandemic has tilted consumer behaviour towards contactless payments. whether this shift will be permanent remains to be seen. also, the private initiatives to offer digital means of payment, like the project launched by the libra initiative, have been further advanced, highlighting the demand for an instantaneous, internet - ready means of payment and the need to keep the payment systems that we central banks own up to speed. this notwithstanding, i am sure that cash will continue to be an important payment medium for the foreseeable future. one particularly interesting example of cash is the greek €1 coin : its national side shows the owl of athena which was depicted on an ancient coin. the little owl associated with the goddess athena became a symbol of wisdom – maybe the “ little bit of wisdom ” that you, christine, were referring to in your first press conference as ecb president. we are now impatient to hear what you have to say. christine, the floor is yours. thank you for your attention. 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches

in germany is yet perceptibly higher than that of the euro area as a whole, employment is on maximum - value and confidence is quite high, for both, consumer and enterprises. the bundesbank ’ s economists expect the economy to grow at a rate of 1. 8 % in 2017, too. but this is nothing compared to the figures forecasted for slovenia. the european commission is projecting growth rates of 3. 0 % in 2017 and 2018 due to higher consumer spending and accelerating investment. the robust economic upswing and rising capacity utilisation in the euro area will also drive up price pressures gradually. of late, however, inflation has risen even more strongly than expected in the december projection, recently hitting 1. 8 %. this sharp increase in prices, however, is attributable mainly to base effects and the higher oil prices of late – since the end of november, 1 / 9 bis central bankers'speeches oil has become significantly more expensive. assuming that oil prices do not rise any further, i see two notable developments. first, inflation this year is likely to be well in excess of the figure projected to date ; for germany, an upward revision of around one - half percentage point is expected – and this might also be the case for the euro area as a whole. second, we are likely to return to somewhat lower inflation rates by the end of the year. this is because domestic price pressures are still comparatively low at present. core inflation, for example, which looks through energy price fluctuations and other volatile components of the consumer price index, stands currently at around the 1 % mark. according to eurosystem forecasts, however, it will slowly increase as the euro area continues its economic recovery and it is expected to reach 1. 7 % at the end of the forecast horizon in 2019. in this constellation, an accommodative monetary policy certainly continues to be appropriate, though opinions differ over the right degree of monetary accommodation and the point in time at which the price outlook will have firmed enough to justify a change in communication and ultimately in the monetary policy stance. in this context, in my view some thoughts are worth sharing. first, monetary policy is automatically looser in the coming months, even without central bank action : due to the increased inflation, the real interest rate declined. the effects are similar to a central bank rate cut. second, in the euro area, we are now far removed from the threat of deflation, which is to