V Ladies and gentlemen, Let me now try to summarise the main features of the interdependence between monetary policy and financial markets: ·  Central banks need well-functioning financial markets. They work as the crucial link between monetary policy-setting and its ultimate goal, price stability. Disintermediation further heightens the importance of financial markets in the transmission mechanism of monetary policy.
Therefore, monetary policymakers need to analyse structural changes in financial markets thoroughly. ·  Central banks acquire information about the expectations of financial market participants by monitoring financial market prices. They cross-check their own forecasts against these data. ·  Finally, in order to avoid misperceptions of the policy stance in the markets, there has to be a consistent communication policy.