the financial sector in the euro area ( see figure 5 ). 31 the ecb ’ s approach contributed to contain the rise in money market spreads last autumn, before helping to reduce them substantially thereafter ( see figure 6 ). however, such measures alone were far from being sufficient in order to normalise conditions in the market. to the extent that ongoing tensions reflected financial institutions ’ need to take into account losses, increase capital and address a general lack of confidence, other public authorities – fiscal authorities, supervisors and regulators – and, ultimately, banks themselves needed to act. further progress in this regard remains urgently required. 32 against this background, it is crucial that central banks act to build and sustain confidence, which is a scarce commodity in times of crisis. policy - makers must always display sang froid – if i may use a french synonym for “ steady - handedness ” – and keep their composure, particularly in the most demanding and turbulent of times. the design of the ecb ’ s nonstandard measures reflects these concerns. to the extent possible, they are a continuation of our operational framework prior to the emergence of market turmoil. moreover, from the outset, they have recognised the need for a credible exit strategy, so as to ensure the independence of the ecb and the credibility of its focus on price stability. the governing council will ensure that the measures taken are quickly unwound and the liquidity provided is absorbed once the macroeconomic environment improves. concluding remarks the exceptional challenges faced over the past two years have required monetary policy action unprecedented in terms of its nature, scope and magnitude. very demanding circumstances have called for bold – yet solidly anchored – action as events have unfolded. we believe that what i would call the “ virtuous triangle ” of credibility, alertness and steadyhandedness – jointly serving to solidly anchor inflation expectations – has served us well both in periods of relative calm and in very demanding and challenging uncharted territory. before coming, i read the conclusions i presented here in jackson hole exactly four years ago with some anxiety, as you can imagine … i saw that, fortunately, risks ahead had not been omitted : “ we have to stand ready at any time to weather the materialisation of new risks. [ … ] being intellectually and conceptually ready is extremely important. ” now that we have a better idea of the dramatic ways in which risk can materialise in the present global economy, we are all, more than ever, convinced that being “

of promoting market liquidity, especially in the early stages of our development of the cnh market. it was against this background that the hkma has all along taken a proactive approach in seeking to strengthen the liquidity of the cnh market in hong kong. in june 2012, the hkma launched a repo facility to provide one - week funds for banks in hong kong as a backstop to facilitate banks ’ liquidity management. however, the facility was for t + 2 settlement and did not fully address the needs of the banks. in order to assist bank treasurers to better manage their liquidity, the hkma shortened the settlement of the repo to t + 1 in january 2013 and again to t + 0 in july 2013. 9. today, i am pleased to announce that, in preparation for the imminent launch of the shanghai - hong kong stock connect, the hkma will implement two additional bis central bankers ’ speeches measures as backstop facility to assist banks in hong kong in managing their rmb liquidity : 10. ( a ) in addition to what the boc hk, as the rmb clearing bank, is providing to the participating banks through intraday overdraft, the hkma will provide an intraday repo facility of up to rmb10 bn to banks in hong kong. the hkma will charge a fee, based on the actual time used during the day, for the use of the facility. the purpose of the hkma intraday liquidity facility is to promote more efficient rmb payment flows between banks ; and ( b ) the hkma will also designate a number of banks active in the cnh market as primary liquidity providers ( plps ). banks that are designated as plps are committed to using and developing hong kong as the global platform for supporting their offshore rmb businesses. they are also committed to expanding their market - making activities in cnh market. in return, the hkma will offer a repo line to each of the plps so as to facilitate more efficient liquidity management when they carry out market - making and other business activities in the cnh market. this bilateral repo line can be used by the plps as intraday or overnight liquidity management purposes. the hkma is now finalising the list of plps and the necessary documentation. we hope to be able to announce the list of plps very shortly. ladies and gentlemen, let me conclude by saying that the competitive edge of a successful