But even in that episode, real GDP contracted less than 3 percent and cumulative job losses were less than 3 million. The recent contraction in the housing sector has also been the most severe episode since the Great Depression. National house prices have fallen 33 percent in nominal terms since their peak in 2006.
First experience gained with the euro Let me describe the first experience gained with the euro from the ECB’s point of view. The Eurosystem’s monetary policy strategy provides financial markets and the public with an important framework on the basis of which monetary policy decisions can be explained in a consistent and predictable manner.