Consequently, the optimal path of  BIS Review 46/2006  3  monetary policy may differ. Monetary independence gives us the capacity to react to asymmetric shocks and to limit their negative impact on the domestic economy. To sum up my arguments thus far, monetary independence allows Switzerland, first, to live with a comparatively low rate of inflation and, second, to reduce the impact of Switzerlandspecific shocks, which limits the volatility of Swiss inflation and growth. The third reason for monetary independence, which I would now like to turn to, is the protection of the Swiss interest rate advantage. Continuity of the interest rate advantage One major attraction of adopting the euro for countries with a record of high inflation was that national interest rates would drop in the run-up to the monetary union and converge to the German level, which was the lowest among the euro's founding members. Swiss interest rates, by contrast, have historically been lower, even lower than those in Germany. The reason why Switzerland enjoys the lowest interest rate levels in Europe has nothing to do with the appeal of our bank secrecy, as many believe. Switzerland is not a net importer of capital, but rather a major capital exporter. Traditionally, the Swiss economy displays a large excess of savings over investments. In 2005, our current account surplus represented 14% of GDP and Switzerland exported more capital than the whole euro area.
There are also relatively large variations between households with regard to the distribution of capital income from capital gains, yield and interest on different types of asset and liability. The effect of an expansionary monetary policy on income and wealth distribution can thus vary for this reason, too. Households’ capital incomes may, for instance, differ in their sensitivity to changes in interest rates. All else being equal, low interest rates benefit household with relatively large debts as interest payments become lower. Households with bank savings are correspondingly disadvantaged and households with relatively large interest-bearing assets thus have a lower yield. Here the maturity of the different assets and liabilities also plays a role. If, for instance, mortgages are mainly at fixed interest rates, the effect of interest-rate cuts will be less than if the loans are primarily at variable rates. A comparison between different income groups shows that liabilities as a percentage of disposable income are more than 250 per cent in all groups in Sweden (see Figure 2). With the exception of the group with the lowest income, however, there is generally little difference in the debt-to-income ratio between the groups. 5 A related question is how income from these two sources develop in relation to one another over time. See, for  instance, Karabarbounis and Neiman (2014) who find that the share of labour income has fallen in many countries and many sectors. 7 [14]  Figure 2.