Such a system, with clear rules established for all participants,  BIS central bankers’ speeches  5  would greatly reduce the contingent liability placed on tax payers and reduce the presumption of bail-outs. I am convinced that these steps are worth taking and lead us towards an efficient and credible European framework.
As regards consumer price developments, inflation in May 2000, as measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), remained at 1.9%. A lower year-on-year change in services prices offset relatively strong rises in other prices, in particular energy and unprocessed food prices.