more favourable terms, and obtain faster decisions on their financing applications. this is because the bureau acts as a one - stop center for banks to obtain consolidated information on smes, which is currently scattered, and will take longer for banks to obtain and verify individually. we have already seen how this can work in the case of consumer financing, where real - time and comprehensive information on consumers ’ credit exposures and history that is available from ccris has significantly shortened loan - processing times. with greater availability of information on smes, the processing time for sme loans can be similarly shortened. thirdly, the bureau includes and takes into account both positive and negative information on smes. certain third party information that financial institutions use in the evaluation of credit applications only provides negative information on the business conducts. examples are information on bankruptcy and legal suits, which are sometimes not updated and may result in a biased assessment of creditworthiness. by collecting and disseminating both positive and negative information, the sme credit bureau will benefit sme loan applicants by providing a more balanced view of smes ’ credit standings. in an objective rating process, credit bureaus typically accord greater weight to the more recent credit information or behavior. negative records in the past can thus be mitigated by more current and consistent good track records. lastly and perhaps of most value to smes, is the insights that smes would gain from a better understanding of their financial deficiencies which lead to rejections of financing applications by financial institutions. this can be deduced from the analysis provided through the bureau ratings and reports. the credit reports would also serve as a convenient tool for smes to carry out a self - evaluation to identify areas that need improvement and initiate adequate remedial actions to increase their competitiveness. smes are thereby empowered to improve their own profile, with correspondingly enhanced prospects for the sme sector as a whole. as i mentioned earlier, it is also encouraging to see a considerable turnout by financial institutions at this seminar. this underscores the sustained and growing attention by financial institutions in the sme sector that is critical to provide the enabling environment for the sme sector to thrive. bank negara has seen a paradigm change in the way in which financial institutions approach the business of sme financing. banks have, and continue to invest significantly, in supporting sme financing niches, and the organisational changes that we have seen have been pervasive in many banks. these banks have acquired tremendous insights

rapid effects on commodity and other import prices, but monetary transmission through economic slack appears to affect inflation more slowly. i believe that uncertain times require a risk - management approach to policy - settinglooking not just at the expected outcomes, but also considering the most salient risks in setting the policy stance. in the current situation, with risks to inflation forecasts skewed to the upside, i believe policy judgments must be based on whether and when we see inflation actually falling in the data, rather than just in forecasts. although most forecasts see considerable progress on inflation in coming years, it is important to consider whether inflation dynamics may have changed in a persistent way, making our forecasts even more uncertain. my perspective on monetary policy how do these experiences and the principles of data dependence and risk management influence my views on current monetary policy? in 2019, well before joining the board, i took part in the federal reserve's fed listens event in chicago. a key takeaway from fed listens was the value of a sustained strong labor market that brings people off the sidelines - those who have been on the margins but who have skills that can be developed and the desire to be part of the workforce, if given a chance. just two weeks ago, we held another fed listens event to hear how businesses, families, and communities are adapting to changes in the post - pandemic economy. notably, we heard about the burden that lower - and middle - income families are feeling from high inflation. these events highlighted for me the importance of achieving both our employment and price - stability mandates. in our current economy, with a very strong labor market and inflation far above our goal, i believe a risk - management approach requires a strong focus on taming inflation. inflation poses both a near - and long - term threat. aside from the immediate effect of higher prices on households and businesses, the longer it persists and the more people come to expect it, the greater the risks of elevated inflation becoming entrenched. i think it is critical that we prevent an inflationary psychology from taking hold. this is not simply an abstract concept, but a risk i take seriously based on personal experience. my time doing dissertation research in russia in the mid - 1990s taught me just how disruptive and painful an extremely high - inflation environment can be. reports over the past few months have shown high inflation to be stubbornly persistent, while the labor market has remained strong. being data dependent, i