at the same time, the average coupon on outstanding corporate bonds remains considerably above rates on new debt issues, suggesting that firms are well positioned to cut their debt service burdens still further as outstanding bonds mature or are called. the net effect of these trends to date has been a decline in the ratio of business interest payments to net cash flow, a significant increase in the average maturity of liabilities, and a rise in the ratio of current assets to current liabilities. with business balance sheets having been strengthened and with investors notably more receptive to risk, the overall climate in credit markets has become more hospitable in recent months. specifically, improvements in forward - looking measures of default risk, a decline in actual defaults, and a moderation in the pace of debt - rating downgrades have prompted a marked narrowing of credit spreads and credit default swap premiums. that change in sentiment has extended even to the speculative - grade bond market, where issuance has revived considerably, even by lower - tier issuers that would have been hard - pressed to tap the capital markets over much of the last few years. banks, for their part, remain well - capitalized and willing lenders. in the past, such reductions in private yields and in the cost of capital faced by firms have been associated with rising capital spending. but as yet there is little evidence that the more accommodative financial environment has materially improved the willingness of top executives to increase capital investment. corporate executives and boards of directors are seemingly unclear, in the wake of the recent intense focus on corporate behavior, about how an increase in risk - taking on their part would be viewed by shareholders and regulators. as a result, business leaders have been quite circumspect about embarking on major new investment projects. moreover, still - ample capacity in some sectors and lingering uncertainty about the strength of prospective final sales have added to the reluctance to expand capital outlays. but should firms begin to perceive that the pickup in demand is durable, they doubtless would be more inclined to increase hiring and production, replenish depleted inventories, and bring new capital on line. these actions in turn would tend to further boost incomes and output. tentative signs suggest that this favorable dynamic may be beginning to take hold. industrial production, as i indicated earlier, seems to have stabilized, and various regional and national business surveys point to a recent firming in new orders. indeed, the backlog of unfilled

– 09, there was over - confidence in the ability of financial markets to correctly price risks. in the wake of the financial crisis, a discussion has emerged as to whether central banks should consider systemic risks that arise due to driving - forces that encourage excessive risk - taking and indebtedness. see bolton et al. ( 2020 ), carney ( 2015 ) and carney et al. ( 2019 ). see brunnermeier and koby ( 2018 ). 7 to about 7 per cent of swedish gdp, while the ecb ’ s and fed ’ s programmes correspond to more than 20 per cent of gdp. the riksbank, like the ecb, has the opportunity to broaden its asset purchases to include other types of bonds. the stock of swedish covered bonds ( housing bonds ) issued in swedish kronor ( sek ) is just under sek 2, 000 billion. this is more than double the size of the outstanding volume of government bonds in the same currency. the stock of corporate bonds issued in sek corresponds to almost 700 billion, while the stock of municipal bonds issued in sek by municipalities and kommuninvest is just over 400 billion. all in all, this means that the riksbank has the possibility to increase its bond purchases. however, the fact that the possibility exists does not make it an appropriate measure. there are several aspects to consider ; for example, how it affects resource distribution in the economy and the risks for to the riksbank ’ s balance sheet. another issue is whether the riksbank should consider sustainability aspects in its bond purchases. i will come back to this at the end of my speech. allow me to summarise what i have discussed so far. i feel confident that the riksbank can act with strength and security if a crisis threatens to destabilise the swedish economy. however, we should be humble when it comes to the difficult considerations that may then be required in monetary policy. the scope for combatting a severe downturn in the swedish economy is improved substantially if other policy areas also contribute, in particular fiscal policy. 13 the remaining issue is the most difficult – should central banks just try to combat the potential negative effects of climate change or should they also act to combat climate change itself? the global climate crisis – a challenge that requires cooperation to be able to answer the question of whether the riksbank can and should have an active role in combatting climate change,