the recent history of inflation is a key factor in the speed and strength of the pass - through from wages to prices. the pass - through is systematically faster and stronger in periods of higher inflation than in periods of lower inflation. 5 thus, following several years of low inflation in the euro area, a more tentative pass - through of wages to prices is understandable. but as labour costs rise, the buffer room for absorbing cost increases through margins will eventually vanish. as price increases become more widespread and firms become more confident about their pricing power, we should see a higher degree of pass - through. that said, if firms start to become more uncertain about the growth and inflation outlook, the squeeze on margins could prove more persistent. this would affect the speed with which underlying inflation picks up and therefore the inflation path that we expect to see in the quarters ahead. when the governing council met in october, we confirmed our confidence in the economic outlook. the underlying strength of domestic demand and wages continues to support our view that the sustained convergence of inflation to our aim will proceed. but in the light of the lags between wages and prices after a period of low inflation, patience and persistence in our monetary policy is still needed. with monetary policy providing a significant degree of stimulus through our interest rate policy, stock of acquired assets and reinvestments of maturing bonds, the governing council assessed that inflation convergence could be maintained even after a gradual winding - down of our net asset purchases. subject to incoming data confirming this assessment, we anticipate that net asset purchases will come to an end in december. 4 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches however, the governing council also noted that uncertainties surrounding the medium - term outlook have increased. when the latest round of projections is available at our next meeting in december, we will be better placed to make a full assessment of the risks to growth and inflation. we have conveyed that we expect interest rates to remain at their present levels at least through the summer of 2019, and in any case for as long as necessary to ensure that inflation continues to move towards our aim in a sustained manner. and we have stated that reinvestments will continue for an extended period of time after the end of net purchases, and in any case for as long as necessary to maintain favourable liquidity conditions and an ample degree of monetary accommodation. the nature of this forward guidance is contingent on economic developments and therefore acts as an automatic stabiliser. if financial or liquidity conditions should

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