to really doubt our economies ever returning to business as usual. at that time it was believed that the new normal would come with secular stagnation, low interest rates and low inflation. romania has secured a record growth of 8. 6 % in 2017 / q3. nevertheless, we need to moderate our enthusiasm. i have noticed that although real growth is evident in the region, it is accompanied by some important risks and vulnerabilities. one of the challenges attached is related to the sustainability of this growth. the national bank of romania shares your 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches view. we should not forget the saying “ easy come, easy go ”. loose economic policies, unbalanced budgets and wage - price spirals could cost us much when the economic downturn check is due. this problem hit us severely in the recent past, but we have hardly learned the lesson. because i have mentioned the economic laws, i will turn now to the legal environment : the report covers extensively the rule of law, the role of institutions and the judiciary. in the report, central and eastern europe is presented as an example of effective measures and progress in this respect, which is of no small importance. romania finds itself in an upright moment when economic performance is associated with strong achievements in the reform of institutions. we should not waste this moment. in the long run, the economy ’ s, the institutions ’ and the society ’ s progress goes hand - in - hand, and, conversely, so does their regress. therefore, we have to be careful not to reverse the current trend. banks in europe seem to ride better on the economic tide, also thanks to wide - ranging reforms brought by the banking and capital markets union. credit is still below its potential and the needs of the economy. with further reduction in npls and higher interest rates, there are better prospects for banks ’ profitability. we see demons of the past in our region today and we wish to avoid any doubting of our european and transatlantic engagements. in order to go further we must prevent the demons of the past from questioning the virtues of opening our economy to foreign investment. the only way to preserve this fine moment for romania is to steer and balance the economic growth, to advance on our european path and grasp the benefits of this historical process. i will now give the floor to mr. jeffrey franks who will deliver an in - depth presentation on the first chapter of the report – “ europe hitting its stride ”,

we still need to develop the analysis capacity, the european investments absorption and the acceleration of funds distribution in the romanian economy. the cooperation and the technical assistance for co - financing of investment projects under the multiannual financial frameworks 2014 – 2020 and the next one, as well as the active role played by the european investment bank in the approval of structural funds under the juncker plan in romania are key priorities to ensure the enablement of economic growth potential in action towards sustainable economic development. the partnership between the european investment bank and the commercial banks in romania ensure the effective transmission mechanism to allocate and distribute the european structural funds to the infrastructure projects, to the development of production capacities of the small and medium enterprises and to the creation of new jobs in the economy. the banks are well capitalized, have an excellent solvency and a superior liquidity, prerequisites for co - financing the companies and the economy. the loan - to - deposits ratio is below 100 %, indicating available resources for financing. nonperforming loans have decreased more than three times, from 22 % to about 6 %, showing a positive trend in a healthier internal ratings model and a sound balance sheet position, while the lending dynamics for companies is below the european average. we have the potential to accelerate the access to finance to support investments as a base for economic growth, instead of a consumption driven growth. this potential is demonstrated by the low financial intermediation in romania, around 29 %, although this percentage can be misleading, as large corporations usually access financing directly abroad, from the headquarters or from the financial institutions in the countries where they are headquartered. the more prudent lending policies and the risk aversion of commercial banks are factors that could be perceived as a break in financing investments at full capacity ; however there is a positive side, too. it is a safe approach to credit as a driver of economic growth, as credit ( lat. “ credere ” ) supports regaining the trust in the financial system and in the banks as institutions that 2 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches ensure the allocation of funds to the private and the public sector. companies in romania, as beneficiaries of european funds, need to respond to some pressing issues such as inadequate management and financial discipline. only around 15 % of small and medium companies are eligible for financing, with a management team capable to conduct a lucrative activity that reflects in a sound set of accounting documents, like the balance sheet and