It is important to stress, however, that the improved outlook for the global economy points to the possibility of addressing old problems and facing new challenges with a higher probability of success. This is particularly true for the euro area economy where the outlook for growth has recently improved, contributing to more optimistic prospects at the global level.
The euro area comprises the economies of the eleven countries which, at the beginning of this year, introduced the euro, the new single European currency. In the euro area, a slowdown in output growth was observed around the turn of the year 1998-99.