*  *  *  It is a pleasure to be in Buenos Aires today to participate in this high-level conference sponsored by the Central Bank of Argentina. Revolutionary changes in financial markets, combined with events such as the market disruptions associated with the subprime lending debacle, have raised anew questions about the role of central banks in maintaining financial stability.
Though central banks have traditionally had some responsibility for financial stability, such responsibility has typically not been placed on par with more explicit mandates for price stability and economic performance, in part perhaps, because of the episodic nature of financial crises.