In programme countries, we have seen a strong improvement of structural primary balances since 2009. In Greece, for example, this is estimated to have improved by more than 14 percentage points of GDP between 2009 and 2012. To put this into context, in this country, the “sequester” calls for cuts of 1.2 trillion dollars over ten years.
This is part of BOU’s on-going commitment to make investing in Government Securities easier and more accessible to the public. I also wish to acknowledge the role that this year’s award winner has played, especially for its participation in the primary auctions, market making capabilities, consistent pricing as well as timely market intelligence.