Policy-makers need to be constantly alert, aware that financial turmoil is likely to emerge in a way that they did not anticipate. As a result, they must be prepared to act decisively to contain financial disruption of a form for which they were not ideally prepared.
This progress is not least visible in concrete events. For example, Ireland and Spain have exited their financial support programmes without any friction. And Portugal is planning to leave its adjustment programme just ten days from today. All three countries recently returned to the sovereign bond markets at relatively low yields. Now let us turn to the European level.