Thus, it is quite clear from the formulation chosen that, in the view of the monetary policy makers in the euro area, both a deflation in the sense of a sustained decline in the price level and a rate of monetary erosion of 2 % and more are deemed to be harmful.
Hence undue importance should not be attached to the fact that the ECB has refrained from formally defining a floor for the objective of price stability. That is due not least to uncertainties with regard to the measurement-error problem posed by the Harmonised Consumer Price Index.