13 Being able to make this commitment expressly conditional on the outlook for inflation, and thus anchored in a well-understood goal, enhanced its effectiveness in providing the needed stimulus, as well as allowing us to adjust the guidance smoothly as conditions warranted.
There is clear evidence that the introduction of the single currency and the associated increase in price and cost transparency have fostered both intra and extra-euro area trade in goods and services. In fact, the sum of intra-euro area exports and imports increased from about 31% of GDP in 1998 to around 40% in 2007 – approximately 9 percentage points.