European Central Bank: Press conference – introductory statement Introductory statement by Mr Willem F Duisenberg, President of the European Central Bank and Mr Christian Noyer, Vice-President of the European Central Bank, at the press conference, held in Frankfurt am Main on 1 February 2001. *  *  *  Ladies and gentlemen, let me welcome you to our first press conference of 2001. The Vice-President and I are here to report, as we have done for more than two years now, on the outcome of today's meeting of the Governing Council of the ECB, which was also attended by the Eurogroup President, Minister Reynders, as well as by Commissioner Solbes. Let me also take this opportunity to again welcome Greece as the twelfth country to join the euro area. Mr. Papademos, the Governor of the Bank of Greece, has been participating in our meetings as a member of the Governing Council since 1 January 2001. The Governing Council conducted its regular examination of monetary and economic developments and their implications for the maintenance of price stability in the euro area. The decision to keep interest rates unchanged reflects the Governing Council's assessment that the risks to price stability in the medium term now appear more balanced than at the end of last year. Factors which might pose upward risks to price stability in the medium term are still present and as such will be subject to ongoing close monitoring. Let me elaborate on this assessment.
It is equally important that further progress be achieved in the area of fiscal policy reform, with continuing progress in fiscal consolidation through limits in public spending growth, allowing both a reduction in remaining budget deficits and an alleviation of the fiscal burden on corporations and households without threatening or slowing the progress in fiscal consolidation. Overall, the existence of the euro and the single monetary policy has provided the euro area with an institutional setting which leaves it significantly less exposed to external influences. Within the euro area the maintenance of price stability over the medium term, together with further progress on structural reforms, will provide an important contribution to the achievement of sustained noninflationary economic growth and will thereby also support a further solid and sustainable expansion of the world economy. Let me now give the floor to the Vice-President, who will inform you about other issues decided by the Governing Council. The Governing Council has adopted a set of standards, recently endorsed by the G10 Governors, as the minimum standards of the Eurosystem's common oversight policy on payment systems. The Eurosystem will assess all systemically important payment systems in the euro area against these "Core Principles" and will make the results of its assessments available to the public. Concerning issues relating to euro banknotes and coins, I should also like to provide you with the following information. First, the Governing Council adopted an ECB Guideline on the 2002 cash changeover.