The main negative shock was to the mining sector, but the transmission to the rest of the economy was muted, helped by government drawing on its financial savings to maintain public spending. For the financial sector, the predominantly "plain vanilla" characteristics and limited international linkages provided a shield against the 7  worst effects, buttressed further by effective regulation and prudential supervision.
On the other hand, in the euro area the growth in negotiated wages stands at around 2 per cent, even if there is no lack of calls for bigger increases.