time now. we have redesigned this report to coincide with today ’ s monetary policy assessment. the aim of the new design is to allow readers to interpret the results of the talks at a glance. in addition, the text is supplemented by charts to enable comparisons over time. a structured approach, both with regard to conducting the surveys and to selecting the companies, forms the basis for the compilation of such time series. in redesigning the report, we also changed the title from ‘ business cycle trends ’ to ‘ business cycle signals ’. i am pleased to be able to present you with the delegates ’ new ‘ business cycle signals ’ report today. it will continue to be published as part of the snb ’ s quarterly bulletin. ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention. it is now my pleasure to give the floor to fritz zurbrugg, who will present this year ’ s financial stability report. page 4 / 4

sector and the securities industry are well underway. if there is one issue that the recent global financial crisis has driven home is the need for a better understanding of the products in our financial system, the levels of risk that are being assumed by various financial institutions, the investments strategies that are being adopted and the quality of information disclosure being provided to investors and the public at large. today ’ s launch is aimed at understanding the size, range, investment practices and impact of the managed funds industry in trinidad and tobago. unlike, the previous baseline study which concentrated exclusively on collective investment schemes, this study is aimed at a wider array of collective investment institutions including mutual funds, trustee divisions of subsidiaries of financial institutions and long - term contractual institutions such as insurance companies, pension funds and the nib, which are also active participants in the securities markets. its prime objectives are to : • develop a comprehensive profile of the managed funds industry in trinidad and tobago with respect to size, structure and institutional composition. • examine and evaluate the asset management practices and the framework within which fund managers make investment decisions. • gauge the impact of the managed funds industry on the size, growth and development of the securities market. • evaluate the effect of the regulatory framework and investment rules on the pattern of deployment of managed funds, on the efficiency of investment and on investment performance. • assess, from the point of view of market actors, the overall prospects for greater integration of the domestic and regional securities markets. from the perspective of the central bank, this study provides us with a unique opportunity to gain a better understanding of the nexus between saving and capital market investment as well as the linkage between capital market development and economic growth. in the final analysis, it will go a long way in : • providing potential investors with a greater understanding of capital markets ; • helping decision - makers better define priorities for the further development of the market ; and • allowing regulators to gain a better insight on how the regulatory framework and investment rules affect the efficient deployment of investment and overall investment performance. the bank lends it full support to this current initiative of the sec and encourages all market participants to participate as effectively as possible to ensure the success of this study. i thank you.