*  *  Introduction  1.1 The world is in the midst of the most severe slowdown since the Great Depression of the late 1920s. We have seen negative growth rates in many countries, developing and industrialised, and world trade has declined dramatically.
All in all, by their prompt interventions the central banks were able to preserve orderly market conditions and avert a liquidity crisis, without endangering the markets’ medium-term expectations in a period of volatility and generalized uncertainty. 4.2. Strengthening the foundations of the financial system  The ongoing financial turbulence has not come as a surprise.