Only when these tasks are done can we probably say, perhaps with a little bit of relief, that the spell the Lost Decades cast on us is at last broken, and that not everything was lost after all. Thank you very much for your attention.
Moreover, there is also some uncertainty over the extent of the adjustment still needed in the euro area corporate sector in order to enhance productivity and profitability, which could have an impact on employment growth and thus private consumption. As regards price developments, the annual rate of HICP inflation generally fluctuated at around 2.3-2.4% between the autumn of last year and March 2003.