Thank you, Mr. Chair.
First of all, I would like to inform you that I will be taking the first speaking turn, and my colleague Mr. Barsalou-Duval will be taking the second one. We will do the same for the next round of questions.
Hello, Mr. Machin and Mr. Leduc. Thank you for being here.
Mr. Machin, thank you for your presentation. The answers to our questions are welcome and very enlightening.
We can see that the financial markets have been very volatile since the beginning of the pandemic. This is very worrying. I would like to have your analysis of the situation with regard to the links between the pandemic and what is happening on the financial markets right now. I would also like to know your forecasts for the next few months.
I'd also like to raise something more specific. The governments of rich countries, in response to the effects of COVID-19, have brought in significant income support measures. The same is true for central banks, which has led to a significant injection of liquidity. But it seems to me that much of this liquidity, that is, new money, has not been used to support demand, either for consumer spending or for investment. Eventually, this liquidity could end up in the financial markets, which could lead to a rise in asset prices, which I would describe as artificial. On a global scale, this could even present the risk of a financial bubble.
What is your analysis of the situation, and what are you doing about it?