I would like to thank the organizers of this conference for their kind invitation to be with you today. As business leaders and investors, you are aware of the sharp asset price corrections and volatility that have characterized international financial markets during recent months.
Two central concerns fueling the observed higher risk aversion seem to be the possibility of a catastrophic event in the European Monetary Union (EMU) and the fear of a global recession. To a large extent, these worries reveal underlying problems stemming from the global financial crisis that began in 2007.