In parallel, long-term inflation expectations aligned with the low  2  BIS Review 52/2008  levels of the best performing economies that were merged into the euro. As a result, in some euro area countries, short-, medium- and long-term market interest rates fell to levels that had not been seen since the long-gone days of the gold standard.
Of course, economic growth is affected not only by the levels of taxes and spending, but also by their composition and structure.