We note that progress is being made in many countries, but several governments need to be more ambitious. Ensuring sound fiscal balances, financial stability and competitiveness in all euro area countries is in our common interest. We are now at your disposal for questions. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3
For that reason, we expect to have overlapping comment periods for both the Basel II NPR and the NPR for the proposed Basel I amendments. In fact, we want all interested parties to compare, contrast, and comment on the two proposals in overlapping timeframes. Accordingly, our proposals could change as a result of comments received or new information gathered by the U.S. agencies.