Importantly, these risks render banks especially vulnerable in the event of a future downturn in the economy, such that tackling the stock of NPLs during the current benign conditions would improve the resilience of the Irish and European banking system in relation to future adverse shocks.
The interest rate on the main refinancing operations of the Eurosystem was left at 3.75% and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility were maintained at 4.75% and 2.75% respectively. Allow me to give you an overview of the main elements of our assessment of the latest information on monetary, financial market and other economic developments.