But early signs are just that: early. It is far too soon to think about counting any chickens yet. Let’s also be clear that the capacity to fine-tune these outcomes is very limited. Most importantly, for today’s discussion, even if we do manage this episode as successfully as we might dare hope, major long-run challenges will remain.
Third, since mortgage loan contracts in several new Member States typically have floating interest rates, rising interest rates would have a negative impact on households’ debt-servicing ability in those countries.