Protectionism and the easing
of financial regulations are a concern, European Central Bank
President Mario Draghi said Monday, warning of the possible
effects of US President Donald Trump's policies.
Saying he could not comment on a multi-speed Europe as hinted
at by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Draghi also said the euro
was "irrevocable".
"We view with concern announcements of potential
protectionist measures", answering a question on a possible
return to protectionism at a global level.
"The EU was created on the basis of free trade," he recalled,
adding that "we will have to judge when we see what has been
announced".
Draghi said"the idea of repeating the conditions that led to
the financial crisis are a very worrying thing" and the "last
thing we need is a loosening of the rules," referring to US
intentions to change the rules for the financial sector.
"The fact that we have not seen risks to financial stability
develop is a reward for the actions undertaken by regulators and
lawmakers since the explosion of the crisis," he stressed.
Draghi said the euro was "irrevocable" and said talk of a
multi-speed Europe, raised at last week's Malta summit by
Merkel, "is a concept that has been merely hinted at, on which
I'm not able to make any comment, at least at the moment".
He said it was "not clear" what was said at the summit.
Draghi also hit back at criticism from German Finance
Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble by saying "we are not
currency manipulators".
Draghi said "the monetary policies enacted reflect the
different positions in the economic cycle of the eurozone and
the USA".
He recalled that in 2013 the euro/dollar exchange rate was
1.40 and Germany already had a trade surplus of 6% with the US
back then.
Draghi said that "contrary to a widespread perception, the
economic conditions of the eurozone have steadily improved" and
"the risks for eurozone forecasts...are prevalently linked to
global factors".
He said December ECB decisions "define a balance between our
growing confidence" on eurozone prospects and "at the same time,
the lack of a clear sign of convergence of inflation rates".
The "resistant recovery" with per-capita eurozone GDP rising
3% in the last two years, economic sentiment at its highest in
five years and unemployment at 9.6%, the lowest since May 2009,
"are steps in the right direction but only the first steps,"
Draghi said, saying "we must continue on this road".
Draghi said monetary decisions taken in December "are the
right ones in the current context".
The benefits of the ECB's monetary policy "clearly outdo the
potential side effects," which are "better addressed, if
necessary, via other policies," Draghi told the EP.
He stressed that the ECB's actions had been "key in
sustaining the ongoing recovery" and that, "our measures played
a key role in preserving eurozone stability, and
that includes financial stability".
The Maastricht Treaty was a "brave decision" that "marked a
new stage in the process of European integration," Draghi told
the EP on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the treaty.
"With the single currency we forged bonds that survived the
worst economic crisis since the Second World War," he added,
saying "it is easy to underestimate the force of this
commitment," which "kept us together for 60 years, in difficult
times".
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