BIS Review 23/2001  5  Business fixed investment expanded rapidly in America during the 1990s, to well above its historical average. Investment in information technology and communications equipment surged, with capacity to produce this equipment expanding by 50 per cent in the past year alone.
At the end of the day, Europe can only work if all of us move in the same direction. Only together can France and Germany act as the driving forces of European integration. And only together can France and Germany help to solve the current crisis. The positive developments I highlighted in my speech show the payoffs of staying on the path of reform.