i am intimidated by the new questions that are being asked and how they are being answered. that is the sign of a good conference. the theme of this year's research fair, emerging trends shaping central bank policy and operations, is fitting. there are enticing and complementary papers on the cbdc ( central bank digital currency ) and monetary policy, the macroeconomics of temperature shocks, the pecking order of monetary policy, the macroeconomics of policy uncertainty, policy uncertainty and cross - border flows, policy 1 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches uncertainty and the real exchange rate, cross - border evidence on a decomposition of inflation, supply shocks with a flat phillips curve, and asymmetric expectations of monetary policy. what a feast of papers. these are exciting times for researchers. as someone who enjoyed doing my share of research, i am jealous of the work you are doing and will be doing. but i am also grateful to be able to count on it. future trends before i end, let me mention three of the trends we could work on for future conferences : economic fragmentation, sustainability, and digitalization. these trends are of real concern to us. more specifically, we could look at such questions as : geopolitical conflict and economic fragmentation including supply chain and protectionist trade disruptions ; how an emerging market, like the philippines - whatever refet means by emerging market - how an emerging market should deal with climate change in a way that it can afford. following refet, maybe a gompertz function will help us see the macroeconomics of artificial intelligence for an emerging market, including the risks it could bring. even including the risk that it could kill us all. i had to mention artificial intelligence because of a personal experience i had a few weeks ago. on social media, there was a video featuring a deepfake image of me. i was portrayed ostensibly recommending investments in what could only be a financial scam. one complaint i do have is that as long as they were doing a deepfake of me, i wish it had made me better looking. so, to close, i would like to welcome and thank everyone who came here today, especially those who traveled far to join us. thanks again to brac and other bsp colleagues who helped organize this important discussion. these emerging trends - economic fragmentation, digitalization, and climate changepose profound policy questions for central banks. as with all new or fast - changing developments, we

european deposit insurance scheme. finally, encourage private risk - sharing across borders via more robust financial integration. conclusion ladies and gentlemen, allow me to conclude. over the past decade, euro area policy making was mainly directed at short - term stabilization, with the ecb occupying an important role. but with the immediate economic crisis behind us, and with the economic outlook improving, we need a recalibration of euro area policy. the focus of policy makers should shift to the structural and institutional problems that are still holding back growth. this is where relatively small steps can make a big difference. or to quote mark twain : “ continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection. ” thank you for your attention. * * *