In all, there have been some indications of a turnaround in the industrial sector and of an improvement in the external environment. Overall, growth is expected to strengthen in the course of this year and next.
Advances on the digitalisation front have also sparked a debate surrounding digital currency. July saw the Eurosystem launch a two-year investigation phase on the introduction of a digital euro. This digital currency could be implemented alongside commercial banks’ book money as failsafe, universally accepted central bank money.