Notwithstanding the improvements that have been made across financial services, remaining issues demonstrate the need for further change, including in the following three areas: 1) Financial strength The banks operating in Ireland are better capitalised, have returned to profitability in aggregate and have more stable funding models. It follows that associated financial stability risks have declined. That said, significant vulnerabilities remain.
The purchase programme was adjusted because of the expected higher price pressure based on the euro area’s strong and broad-based economic growth. Its economy has now grown continuously for 18 quarters, with the relevant indicators pointing to continued strong growth. According to the projections made by ECB experts, the economy is expected to grow even slightly faster in the short term than previously expected.