In the present market conditions, central banks are of course very much interested in banks’ exposures to the US sub-prime sector and to structured financial products, as well as the effect of the price corrections on banks’ solvency position. A second area of cooperation I want to mention is liquidity, which is again at the cross-roads of central banking and banking supervision.
They understand that they make crucial contributions to the policymaking process, not only in the realm of monetary policy but in banking, payments, consumer affairs, and other areas, and they bring great pride and professionalism to their work. Moreover, they understand the value of sophisticated and subtle economic analysis, which they apply both to day-to-day questions of policy and to more fundamental research questions.