Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank our guests for coming today.
I'm going to start with a very broad question or two, and then get more specific about the report so I can I understand. I learn something every time I read these things, or at least I think I do, and I need your advice or your guidance on this.
To me, much of the economy is driven by confidence. If they have confidence they spend, things grow, people tell you it's growing, they believe you, and they keep it going.
My issue is this, and I asked this of the economists who were here before. We're talking about a growth rate that's less than 3%, and the indication is that it's negative. Some countries I noticed in here are way up there, 9% for China, for example, but Europe is at 1.1%, Japan's at 1.3%, the rest of the world is at 3.6%, and the United States is at 2.3%. But if we are at 2.6% or 2.8%, why is 3% such a magic number? Why can't we be happy with 2.5% growth? Why can't we say, “Look, we're growing, things are moving in the right direction, and we need to continue on that path”? Tell me why 3% is that magic number. Who came up with that?