But because the current breakthroughs – just think of 3D printers, autonomous vehicles or cognitive computing – are virtually unprecedented in scope and scale, the “march of the machines” may potentially render a significant share of the international fragmentation of trade 4 / 10  BIS central bankers' speeches  redundant, particularly in the manufacturing sector.
Elsewhere in the Bank, staff are analysing developments in the financial system and financial markets. Inevitably the data that we look at are subject to measurement error and they are often conflicting. This means that much of our time is spent discussing the data and what they tell us about recent trends, as well as the future.