By now, the understanding of our strategy has greatly improved, and the recent evaluation and clarification of the strategy has certainly helped to this end. The ECB today ranks as one of the most open, transparent and predictable central banks in the world, and we continually seek to improve our communication.
Overall, a lot has been achieved on this front, but improvements can still be made in other areas. For instance, much more progress remains to be made in respect of the integration of European financial markets. As economic theory would predict, the single currency has eliminated exchange rate risk and lowered transaction costs. This has indeed significantly reduced borrowing costs in the euro area.