back of stabilised real disposable income, a declining general level of prices and reduced uncertainty. other significant positive developments were the recovery of total employment by 0. 3 % and of dependent employment by 2. 3 %, while the number of unemployed decreased for the first time since 2008, by 3. 3 %. nevertheless, the unemployment rate remains high and the highest in the eu. another major concern is that the long - term unemployment rate continues to rise, which increases the risk of human capital depreciation. unit labour costs decreased further in 2014 on the back of higher productivity and lower employer contributions, thereby helping the economy gain in competitiveness. structural competitiveness in greece has been showing signs of improving since 2013. more specifically, according to the world economic forum ’ s global competitiveness index, greece moved up the ranking to 81st place, from 91st in 2012, while according to the world bank ’ s ranking on the “ ease of doing business ”, greece advanced to 61st place, from 65th and 89th, respectively, in the past two years. however, low access to financing, red tape and tax policy bis central bankers ’ speeches instability remain the biggest drags on the international competitiveness of greek businesses. the over - performance against the primary surplus target set in the economic adjustment programme by 1. 2 % of gdp in 2013 was a milestone achievement that provides a solid base for the attainment of the fiscal target in 2014 for a third consecutive year. however, the general government fiscal outcome in 2014 faces downside risks, largely associated with the uncertainties in the last weeks of the year, combined with a back - loaded revenue schedule. these uncertainties have increased following the completion of the state budget execution for 2014, which pointed to significant tax revenue shortfalls, especially in december. despite an increase in public investment, total investment remains particularly low, reflecting a decrease in private investment mainly on account of limited bank lending and the high cost of borrowing. the fall in private investment was primarily concentrated in residential investment, whereas productive business investment has started to show signs of recovery. for the first time since 2008, the increase in investment in the third quarter of 2014, albeit moderate at 1 %, may be signalling a longer - lasting recovery trend. global financial markets global financial market conditions continued to improve in the first half of 2014. gradually, however, from the third quarter onwards, increasing investor uncertainty about the banking sector of euro area countries, signs of economic recovery losing

in promptly setting up a sufficiently forceful institutional response. these difficulties were clearly identified by the markets and meant that the specific risk of insolvency of a member state rapidly turned into a systemic risk for the whole of the area. evidently, the spread of fiscal difficulties in one specific country to other member states can run through many channels, which may include the exposure of financial institutions to sovereign debt, the correlation between risk premia on markets and the effects associated with changes in trade flows. the importance of these mechanisms is unquestionable. but the speed at which tensions have spread in this case and their initial and sharp impact on those member states whose public finances have most deteriorated suggest that the weaknesses perceived in the institutional arrangements for governance of the euro area may have played a central role. as has been brought home to us in these months, the rapid spread of tensions has meant difficult and far - reaching decisions have had to be adopted on two fronts : the common european front and the domestic front of each member state. on the european front, the heads of state and of government and the ecofin outlined a powerful programme of financial support for the greek authorities. implementation of the programme was conditional upon greek economic policies being redressed with regard to their fiscal consolidation strategy, which had to be strengthened and accelerated, and to the need to undertake ambitious structural reforms to move back onto a path of sustained growth. subsequently, the agreement to create a european stabilisation mechanism strengthened this firm commitment of the member states to maintaining the stability of the euro area. although the details of this programme are still being worked out, the volume of the funds involved, which including the imf contribution could amount to as much as €750 billion, seems sufficiently illustrative of the determination of governments to defend the common european project. naturally, as in the case of the initial support package for greece, the possible financial support will always be subject to a strict principle of conditionality, as an indispensable factor to ensure that the underlying problems are addressed with sufficient ambition and determination, and to avoid possible situations of moral hazard which could degenerate into the accumulation of new risks for the future. the european commission and the european central bank have also contributed decisively to this task of strengthening the common pillars of the area. in this respect important steps have been taken to establish a sounder framework of policies to preserve the smooth functioning of the euro area. i refer in particular to the commission ’ s recent proposals to strengthen in