##butable to infrastructure and investment programmes, these are likely to generate a positive rate of return for the south african economy in the medium to long term. conclusion the list of challenges i have focused on is not exhaustive. nonetheless, from this brief and selective review, it is apparent that south africa ’ s economic policy environment, like that of many other emerging markets, will be challenging. clearly, south africa ’ s immediate priority is to strengthen the growth momentum. unfortunately, the role of monetary policy is limited in this regard as monetary policy cannot address structural deficiencies in the economy and influence long - term growth. while monetary policy should and will play its role within the confines of its mandate, a concerted effort is needed by all role players in agreeing and then effectively coordinating and implementing the necessary structural reforms, including addressing the electricity challenges facing the country. this requires a strong, constructive, and thus effective partnership between government, business, labour and civil society organisations. the mpc is of the view that inflation risks are skewed to the upside. having indicated previously that, while not on a pre - set course and being data - dependent, interest rates will have to normalise over time, earlier this year we felt that short - term dynamics allowed for a pause on the interest rate normalisation path. there is now reduced flexibility in this regard bis central bankers ’ speeches and the recent deterioration in the inflation outlook will require the mpc to carefully assess when it will be appropriate to adjust the policy rate further. the forecast horizon is fraught with uncertainties, which calls for heightened vigilance, decisive policy action, and clear communication. it requires us to sharpen our analytical tools to better understand, and strengthen our capacity for forecasting, policy analysis and implementation. thank you. bis central bankers ’ speeches

than falling over the last 10 years or so. this is manifested in the fact that the czech republic is the second biggest producer of cars per head in the world. moreover, the czech republic and slovakia ( the eurozone country ) – which formed a single state until 1993 – are together by far the biggest car - producing countries in the world in per capita terms. with 150 cars produced per every 1, 000 citizens these two countries are well ahead of south korea and germany combined in per head metrics. many of my friends in the real economy say that the czech republic is a country where everything is produced, from planes, through turbines, cars, buses, locomotives and guns, to bearings and brushes. whatever you need to produce you will always find at least one factory capable of making it, the anecdotal evidence seems to suggest. the question we face is rather whether we are overindustrialised for a country of our size. furthermore, yesterday i heard many comments about the trade deficits of numerous countries in the eurozone with germany. again, not in our case. if you look at a map of europe you won ’ t 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches be surprised to learn that germany is by far our biggest trading partner, with more than 30 % of our exports going there and with the biggest proportion of foreign investment in the czech republic coming from germany. but you might be surprised when i tell you that the czech republic is one of the few countries having a trade surplus, not a trade deficit, with germany. we export more to germany than we import from it. and that trade surplus has been increasing over time. with currently the lowest unemployment rate in the eu, decreasing public debt, yields on some government bonds below those in germany ( which is chiefly because of the current monetary policy of my bank ), and the state budget this year heading for a surplus, you might think my country is almost an economic paradise. are people happy? not really. they have other issues that frustrate them, such as why average wages are still two to three times lower than those in germany and many other countries after 25 years of transition, when at the same time many products carrying the “ made in germany ” label are assembled on our territory. or why so many companies pay such large dividends to owners abroad and we are unable to be attractive enough for foreign capital to be reinvested on our soil. and this is us – we have a tendency not to