As with all other measures the ECB has taken, the LTROs are fully in line with our guiding principle: the maintenance of price stability. We constantly monitor the developments of credit and money in the euro area. If inflationary risks were to emerge, we would take the necessary action to prevent these risks from materialising and withdraw any excess liquidity.
When we measure monetary liquidity, we do not look at the balance sheet of the Eurosystem. We look at the balance sheet of the euro area banking sector. Only the latter shows the interaction with the real economy. And it tells us that the growth of money and credit remains very subdued, despite a recent stabilisation.