Answer: As far as the business cycle is concerned, the level of synchronisation has improved over the last 20 years, and recent analysis suggests that this level has never been that high for the euro area economies. Furthermore, dispersion of growth in the euro area is not different from the magnitude of equivalent dispersion between growth in the various States in the United States.
So it seems to be characteristic of very large economies. But we have persistent differences in the long-term trend growth and in the growth potential of the various euro area economies, which can be explained by factors such as the level of structural reforms and demographic developments. It is this persistence of trend growth differences which seems to be the characteristic of Europe.