sound and liquid financial assets is largely disconnected from their level of economic growth : rising revenues in the emerging world need to “ find a home ” in sound and liquid financial markets. finally, in any case, the question of sustainability – the resilience of capital flows to the accumulation of imbalances – remains a pressing one. while capital flows tend to move freely across borders, exchange rate regimes remain very diverse in their degrees of flexibility. this leads to asymmetric adjustments depending on the exchange rate regime, not only between currency areas, but also inside the same region, such as in asia. overall, some of the main floating currencies may end up bearing a higher share of the adjustment on their shoulders than they should. maintaining integrated global capital markets in an environment where such differences persist might not be sustainable over the long term. an orderly unwinding of global imbalances might therefore imply greater flexibility from countries with large current account surpluses and fixed exchange rates. i will conclude on a matter of debate for international financial stability for the future. as i have said, financial systems have become more efficient as a result of globalisation and innovation. but have they become more resilient, that is, more capable of absorbing shocks? none of us has the answer to that question now, but it will be interesting for central banks and regulators to monitor financial developments in the coming months, in search of clues. ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention.

7 percent on average. however, the range for german banks varies and can be as low as 2 but also as high as 25 percent for an individual bank. ( slide ) in conclusion, let me highlight the key aspects i would like to see considered in the context of commercial real estate financing. you have seen, that cre tends to be more volatile. bis central bankers ’ speeches moreover, global and adverse economic developments usually have stronger impacts on cre markets and financing compared to its relative, the residential real estate market. cre financing is clearly a global business that accounts for a considerable part of banks ’ assets. as highlighted before, the cre market attracts multiple lenders with different backgrounds. and they have a multitude of finance tools in their hands. it is not surprising that cre finance is rather complex and differs even more among countries compared to the residential equivalent. all this contributes to limited availability, quality and comparability of data on cre financing and markets. ( slide ) this workshop aims at the importance of cre underwriting and its role in financial stability. there are numerous aspects and implications to discuss over the next few hours. and hopefully, there are first conclusions being drawn and questions being answered. for example : in what way may cre cycles and potential asset price bubbles affect cre underwriting and financial stability? to what extent would the deterioration of cre - related asset quality and values affect banks ’ balance sheets? does banks ’ forbearance play an important role? what would be the effect of further loan losses and break away of profits, which relate to cre lending? what are the dynamics and dependencies between investors, different types of lenders, market developments, and economic prospects? and last but not least : from a regulator ’ s perspective – and as a possible issue for discussion during the afternoon sessions –, do we have all relevant information and tools at our discretion to identify cre related risks and to manage or even limit those to an acceptable level? a stable financial system is essential. cre underwriting plays an important role in this. appropriate information and instruments now need to be identified and if seen as necessary should be implemented subsequently. this workshop and all your contributions will help to take the right steps towards safer banks and a better financial system. as a central banker, i am therefore particularly happy that my fellow lead discussants in this session all are from the private sector. and i look forward to your contributions. thank you very much for