Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis and Commissioner for the Economy Paolo Gentiloni both congratulated Pascal Donohoe for his election.

Ministers of the euro area also discussed the economic situation, with a focus on the Commission interim summer forecast (see below), which confirms that the euro area entered a recession of unprecedented depth in the second quarter. The forecast also confirms that the rebound has started, though it is far too early to relax. The following discussion focused on the fiscal stance, with the presence of Professor Niels Thygesen, the Chair of the European Fiscal Board. Overall, outgoing President Centeno said that a fiscal policy consensus has been reached: the EFB, the Commission, the ECB and Eurogroup ministers all support timely and targeted policies to combat the pandemic and to protect the fabric of our economies and societies. This translates into a strongly supportive fiscal stance in the euro area, which complements the supportive monetary policies of the ECB.