Services productivity and monetary policy  Productivity in the services sector matters not only to each and every one of us as consumers. It is also important for central banks in general, and for the ECB in particular. Let me mention three key dimensions in this respect.
The first two dimensions have to do with the nexus between productivity and inflation, both from a longer-term and a cyclical perspective. Over the longer term, in a world of rising commodity prices other components of inflation need to grow more slowly, if at all, for overall inflation to be in line with central banks’ objective to maintain price stability.