mario draghi : welcome address " into the future : europe's digital integrated market " opening remarks by mr mario draghi, president of the european central bank, at the joint ecb and european commission conference " into the future : europe's digital integrated market ", frankfurt am main, 31 january 2017. * * * it is a pleasure to welcome you here today to this joint ecb and european commission conference on europe ’ s digital integrated market of tomorrow. the conference title invites us to look to the future : to a european financial market which is both integrated and digital. it is indeed fitting that these two elements are considered together. in a world of increasing digitalisation, our overarching aim of promoting financial integration at the european level is necessarily set against a backdrop of ever more sophisticated technology and innovation. capital markets union and post - trade integration first, let me say a few words on financial integration, which is a focal point for two of our panels today. promoting european financial integration is – besides the primary objective of price stability – a key objective of the eurosystem. it is essential for a well - functioning single currency. indeed, you can see financial integration and the single currency as two sides of the same coin : one basic motivation for the single currency was to maximise the benefits of the single market for capital. conversely, it was understood that integrated financial markets would be necessary for an effective single currency. and financial integration is not something we can take for granted. as we saw in the financial crisis, incomplete financial integration creates vulnerabilities and is liable to fragment. it is the quality of financial integration which is key. with the banking union, we are laying the foundations for a more complete financial integration in the future. but to be fully comprehensive, a single financial market must also extend to capital market integration. with this in mind, i am pleased that mr olivier guersent, who has kindly agreed to replace mr valdis dombrovskis, vicepresident of the european commission, is here today to update us on the status of the commission ’ s work on the capital market union and outline the issues at stake. the ecb welcomes the capital markets union project. it has the potential to complement the banking union, strengthen economic and monetary union and deepen the single market : to provide, together with the banking union, the preconditions for a more sustainable financial integration in the future. the eurosystem has laid some of

albania cut the key interest rate by 0. 25 percentage points to 3. 75 %. through anchoring inflation expectations, easing liquidity pressures and cutting the short - term interest rates, the monetary policy has aimed at reducing the costs of long - term lending to the economy and supporting the growth of credit, consumption and investments in albania. the bank of albania's easing policy did not reflect uniformly across the financial market segments. the latest key interest rate cut was reflected swiftly and completely both in the interbank market and the primary market of government securities. on the other hand, it was only partially transmitted to the deposits market and even less to the credit market. these developments illustrate the fact that, in the presence of added risk premiums and structural changes of behaviour in the financial market and the real economy, the effectiveness of monetary policy action is lower. based on these reasons, the bank of albania decided to support its stimulating monetary policy with a number of changes on the easing side of the supervisory, regulatory and macroprudential framework. set out in details in the previous month, these measures aim at further reducing liquidity premiums and intermediation costs in the financial markets, in order to boost lending and economic growth. our projections for 2013 support the assessment for albania's economic growth ranging close to past year's rates. foreign demand will be the main driver of economic growth, while the fiscal policy is expected to contribute to growth on the same direction, but at lower intensity, in the period ahead. on the other hand, private consumption and investment remain weak and unstable. the continuation of below - potential economic growth will determine weak inflationary pressures in the upcoming months as well. in the absence of unexpected supply - side shocks, consumer prices will continue to rise at low rates. with a 90 % probability, four - quarter - ahead annual inflation will range within the 0. 6 – 3. 6 % band. the low annual inflation rates and forecast for their continuation over the monetary policyrelevant horizon call for maintaining the stimulating nature of the monetary policy over the next quarters. bis central bankers ’ speeches * * * at the end of discussions, the supervisory council decided to keep the key interest rate unchanged, at 3. 75 %. it concluded that stimulating monetary conditions establish the proper premises for meeting the inflation target in the medium term, and contribute to the growth of aggregate demand and full utilisation of production capacities. the weak inflationary pressures determine the continuation of a stimulating monetary policy