The differential in per capita income compared with the United States - where the population is growing considerably more quickly than in the euro area - has been narrowing somewhat since 1999, however. But this development is due to the fact that the USA was hit harder by the cyclical slowdown than the euro area was.
For example, we pressed for the company to ensure that robust corporate governance surrounds all compensation actions and worked with AIG management on limits to executive compensation that restrict salary and bonuses for 2008 and 2009. The Treasury has also imposed standards governing executive compensation that are broader than the general restrictions under the TARP Capital Purchase Program.