I would first like to draw a broad picture of economic growth trends in Europe as compared to the United States; based on this diagnosis, I would then like to stress how the issues of structural reforms are key to preserve and improve the economic performance of the European economy.
Assessment of the euro area’s growth performance Let me start with an assessment of the euro area’s growth performance. Since the 1980s, real GDP in the euro area has grown on average at a pace almost one percentage point lower than in the U.S.