* * * Dear Commissioner Vestager, distinguished guests, I am delighted to host this dinner together with European Movement Ireland in honour of Commissioner Vestager. Welcome to Dublin and welcome to the Central Bank of Ireland. The central banking community takes a strong interest in the competition portfolio held by Commissioner Vestager.
In particular, there is increasing evidence that the level of competition and the vigour of competition policies are key factors in determining macroeconomic performance and long-run living standards. For instance, the recent empirical research of Guttiérrez and Philippon (2017) and Dottling et al (2017) finds that investment rates are negatively correlated with indicators of market concentration.