After all, it was the large institutions in particular which played the tragic leading role in the crisis about ten years ago. Gradual harmonisation of the financial sector would not be in the customer's interests either. The German banking and savings bank sector in particular is characterised by its great diversity and its close customer proximity.
High and variable inflation erodes purchasing power, creates uncertainty, distorts investment decisions, and causes arbitrary redistributions of wealth between savers and borrowers. But sustained negative inflation – or deflation – is even more pernicious. The 2 per cent target provides a buffer that gives monetary policy greater scope to avoid the risk that disinflation could deteriorate into outright deflation.