Fourth, a commitment to increase the capital position of banks to 9% of Core Tier 1 by the end of June 2012 and to facilitate access to term-funding through a coordinated approach to bank liability guarantees at the EU level.
Growth of consumer spending has been supported by the ongoing job gains and relatively high levels of household wealth and consumer sentiment. Business investment has strengthened this year following surprising weakness in 2016. The faster gains partly reflect an upturn in investment in the energy sector as oil prices have firmed.