Since July 2007 the ECB has estimated daily yield curves reflecting the implied market remuneration rates of euro area central government bonds for residual maturities ranging from 3 months to 30 years. These curves help to gauge market expectations regarding economic and financial activity, as well as being used for monetary policy purposes. The curves are presented in a very user-friendly way, using the latest web technologies. 4  4. The available monthly statistics on outstanding amounts of Short-Term European Paper have been supplemented with daily statistics on yields. This has enabled the ECB to ensure transparency while respecting the confidentiality of individual price or yield data. 5. The external statistics of the ECB now provide separate data for Brazil, Russia, India, mainland China and Hong Kong as counterparts. Moreover, they also show the quarterly changes in the overall external position of the euro area, broken down into transactions, exchange rate changes, asset price changes and other changes. 5  1  See http://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/money/interest/interest/html/interest_rates_2007-12.en.html. 2  An updated overview of all available ECB statistics has recently been http://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/other/ecbstatisticsqualityframework200804en.pdf. 3  See “The introduction of quarterly sectoral accounts statistics for the euro area” in the November 2007 issue of the ECB’s Monthly Bulletin; “Recent developments in the household and corporate sectors: information from new quarterly euro area sector accounts” in the June 2007 issue of the ECB’s Monthly Bulletin; and “New estimates on holdings by sector for euro area M3” in the December 2007 issue of the ECB’s Monthly Bulletin. 4  See http://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/money/yc/html/index.en.html#data.

Given the concentration of growth and development in emerging economies, going forward, the extent of underinsurance is a concern. In many of these economies, efforts are being aggressively pursued to increase awareness of the importance of insurance protection in helping one manage risks, and to develop an effective insurance market to meet these needs. The insurance industry in Malaysia currently stands at crossroads of implementing important reforms being introduced by Bank Negara Malaysia both in the general and life insurance sectors. The objective of the reforms is to further enhance the competitiveness of the industry, ensure its continued resilience, and encourage greater innovation in solutions offered for households and businesses to better manage risks. To this end, two aspects of the reforms are significant. The first is the progressive strengthening of prudential standards that aim to improve underwriting and risk assessment capabilities within insurance companies, while substantially strengthening incentives for insurers to differentiate themselves in the market. The second is the structural changes that are being introduced to reduce market distortions and drive efficiency improvements. Beyond domestic borders, the Bank also continues to pursue further liberalisation in the cross border provision of insurance in certain sectors, such as the Marine, Aviation and Goods in International Transit (MAT) sector, both to enhance capacity and reduce costs for businesses. This is primarily being advanced under regional integration plans, focusing in particular on ASEAN.