The same is true of an economy. Financial policymakers not only need to encourage strong and sustainable economic growth, they also need to work on improving economic flexibility. At the outset, I spoke briefly about trade. Removing barriers to trade is one important way of making an economy more flexible.
We all know that freer international trade helps countries to more fully exploit the gains that come from increased competition and specialization. It is true that adjusting to freer international trade is not always easy.