Some advocate that the Riksbank should be clearer than it is now with regard to what is considered a desirable path for the real economy over the coming years. I wish to point out here that the discussion on real economy considerations taken in monetary policy does not mean that we should supplement our price stability target with a growth target. This may be a semantic issue for some people; what is the difference between consideration and a target. To speak in general terms of a target for the real economy would send the wrong signals. The Riksbank has a statutory objective for monetary policy and that is to maintain price stability. In addition, we attempt to set the interest rate in such a way that monetary policy – given the price stability target – contributes to subduing short-term fluctuations in the real economy. There is no reason to change this. It is a precarious task to try to quantify what level can be considered normal for capacity utilisation. Estimates of the output gap - that is, the difference between actual output and equilibrium output – can vary considerably depending on what method is used. This means, for instance, that attempts to estimate the amount of spare resources on the basis of an analysis of the labour market can provide an entirely different picture than when only GDP data are used to calculate the output gap.
I have no doubt that the quality of the discussions we have today will allow us to deepen our understanding of these challenges and, hopefully, allow us to draw some useful conclusion in terms of economic policy. I leave the floor now to Mr. Isidro González, Deputy Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean, thanking him as well as you all for your presence here today, and thanking Mr. Senén Florensa, President of the Executive Committee of IEMed, for the cooperation in the organisation of this event. Now, Isidro, the floor is yours. 3/3