stability, such powers will tend to rely on a system of regulation and supervision over different actors in the financial system that is often discharged by different authorities, using different instruments and approaches. ensuring effective coordination across such a system depends on a number of factors. institutional set ups such as inter - agency arrangements – of which there are many good examples – are important and clearly even necessary. but they are not a sufficient condition for effective coordination. the most important factors for effective coordination are more likely to be internal ones – the submission of institutional agendas to a higher collective goal, an internal resolve to overcome inherent conflicts, and the organisational flexibility to move in a common direction with others. in increasing their agility to shift gears where required, authorities must also find ways to do so while preserving the credibility and predictability of policy. shorter policy cycles and more frequent adjustments in response to developing risks can make this significantly more challenging. communicating financial stability policies effectively will be key. this is incredibly difficult to do, particularly to a broad and diverse audience who are more likely than before to be affected by policies that are directed at managing financial stability risks. the challenges are further compounded by the reality that the vast majority of the public prefer to receive information not through traditional channels but through secondary sources, including social media. authorities are responding in a number of different ways. some have increased the frequency of published financial stability reviews, while making them more readable and easy to understand. others have taken their message directly to the masses by supplementing official financial stability communications with multi - faceted media campaigns. authorities have also strengthened industry and inter - agency platforms for communicating information on financial stability developments. what is clear is that communications has become an integral part of the management of financial stability. and it goes beyond increasing the effectiveness of a particular policy response to emerging risks. it is essential to the integrity of financial stability policies over time, and to public confidence in the institutions that are responsible for implementing them. in a more globalised financial system, authorities also face increasing pressures to conform to global standards, many of which were not designed with institutions that have no or limited activities beyond their domestic borders in mind. global standards are also often ill - equipped to respond to specific conditions in domestic financial systems that differ significantly in their stage of development and vulnerabilities to risks. the more inclusive process to global standard setting is therefore very much welcomed and needs to be further enhanced through continued open dialogue and support for implementation approaches that are more responsive to

european central bank : press conference - introductory statement introductory statement by mr jean - claude trichet, president of the european central bank, helsinki, 6 may 2004. * * * ladies and gentlemen, it is a pleasure to welcome you to our press conference here in helsinki, where the governing council of the european central bank met today for the ninth time outside frankfurt. i would like to thank acting governor matti louekoski for his invitation and very kind hospitality, as well as the staff of suomen pankki - finlands bank for a perfectly organised meeting. we deeply regret that mr matti vanhala had to resign from his position and we wish him all the best. let me now report on the outcome of today ’ s meeting. on the basis of our regular economic and monetary analyses, we continue to expect that price stability will be maintained over the medium term. accordingly, we did not change our assessment of the monetary policy stance and left the key ecb interest rates at their current low levels. the low interest rates across the entire maturity spectrum are also supporting the economic recovery in the euro area. as always, we will continue to monitor carefully all developments that could affect our assessment of risks to price stability over the medium term. allow me to elaborate on our decision, turning first to the economic analysis. regarding the current situation and the very short - term outlook, the conjunctural indicators available still provide mixed evidence. all in all, they suggest that the recovery of real economic activity in the euro area has continued into 2004, albeit at a modest pace. most recent information has been more encouraging, with the latest euro area survey data offering more positive signals with regard to the beginning of the second quarter. while the latest positive signals need to be confirmed by future developments, they underpin the expectation of the gradual recovery in the euro area continuing and strengthening over time. the conditions for such a recovery are in place. first, global economic growth continues to be robust and world trade has strengthened. the global economic upturn is broadly based, both geographically and across sectors, and thus provides a favourable external environment for the euro area. in this context, we expect euro area exports to grow significantly this year and next. second, favourable financing conditions, improvements in corporate efficiency and earnings and the strength of global demand should help investment. growth in real disposable income should support private consumption, especially since households appear not to face financial constraints that might impede stronger spending. over time,