FRANKFURT (AFX) - European Central Bank executive board member Eugenio Domingo Solans said "great efforts" are needed to make wage settlements and prices in the euro zone more flexible. Speaking to Wirtschaftswoche in an interview, Solans said unions should look beyond their own countries and realise that products need to be competitively priced not just in the member states, but throughout the euro zone. "Great efforts in this area are necessary," Solans told the weekly magazine. He added the introduction of the euro will not have a significant impact on the euro zone's short-term economic performance, even though it should increase potential growth in the long run. Solans also urged governments to abide "strictly" by the EU stability and growth pact on budget deficits, and put in place much needed structural reforms. "Governments must finally have the courage to give more space to market forces," he said.