of financial and monetary conditions. economic activity the economy remains weak. consumers continued to hold back on their spending, investment moderated and companies exported less, reflecting a slowdown in external demand and some losses in competitiveness. however, surveys point to a gradual recovery over the course of this year. as inflation falls and wages continue to grow, real incomes will rebound, supporting growth. in addition, the dampening impact of past 1 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches interest rate increases will gradually fade and demand for euro area exports should pick up. the unemployment rate is at its lowest since the start of the euro. employment grew by 0. 3 per cent in the final quarter of 2023, again outpacing economic activity. as a result, output per person declined further. meanwhile, employers are posting fewer job vacancies, while fewer firms are reporting that their production is being limited by labour shortages. governments should continue to roll back energy - related support measures to allow the disinflation process to proceed sustainably. fiscal and structural policies should be strengthened to make our economy more productive and competitive, expand supply capacity and gradually bring down high public debt ratios. a speedier implementation of the next generation eu programme and more determined efforts to remove national barriers to deeper and more integrated banking and capital markets can help increase investment in the green and digital transitions and reduce price pressures in the medium term. the eu's revised economic governance framework should be implemented without delay. inflation inflation edged down to 2. 8 per cent in january and, according to eurostat's flash estimate, declined further to 2. 6 per cent in february. food price inflation fell again, to 5. 6 per cent in january and 4. 0 per cent in february, while energy prices in both months continued to decline compared with a year ago but at a lower rate than in december. goods price inflation also fell further, to 2. 0 per cent in january and 1. 6 per cent in february. services inflation, after remaining at 4. 0 per cent for three months in a row, edged lower to 3. 9 per cent in february. most measures of underlying inflation declined further in january as the impact of past supply shocks continued to fade and tight monetary policy weighed on demand. however, domestic price pressures are still elevated, in part owing to robust wage growth and falling labour productivity. at the same time, there are signs that growth in wages is starting to moderate. in addition, profits are absorbing part

are determined to ensure that inflation returns to our two per cent medium - term target in a timely manner. based on our current assessment, we consider that the key ecb interest rates are at levels that, maintained for a sufficiently long duration, will make a substantial contribution to this goal. our future decisions will ensure that our policy rates will be set at sufficiently restrictive levels for as long as necessary. we will continue to follow a data - dependent approach to determining the appropriate level and duration of restriction. in any case, we stand ready to adjust all of our instruments within our mandate to ensure that inflation returns to our medium - term target and to preserve the smooth functioning of monetary policy transmission. we are now ready to take your questions. 3 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches