Some of you may have become used to quite negative news from the European continent, as we not only endured the global financial crisis but also witnessed how it triggered the euro area crisis. As a result, the last ten years were something of a dry spell for the EU’s economy.
But things have actually changed for the better of late: the economic recovery is gaining momentum and has spread to all EUcountries. Today, I will paint a positive picture of the current development and will also talk about the positive outlook. Yet in my remarks I will also focus on the two big challenges the EU faces, namely Brexit and euro area reform.