bank of japan presents summaries of articles published in the november edition of its quarterly bulletin bank of japan, communication, 28 / 11 / 97. flow of funds in japan, 1996 summary in 1996, the gross amounts of fund - raising and financial investment by the domestic nonfinancial sector ( comprising the corporate business, personal, and public sectors ) during the year both decreased from the previous year, remaining at low levels compared with the past. the sector ’ s fund - raising through borrowing declined, while funds raised through government bond issues reached a record high. as for financial investment, there was a larger net redemption of securities ( excluding investment trusts ) than in 1995, and the net investment in insurance products narrowed significantly. in the corporate business sector, the financial surplus marked a record high. this was because ( 1 ) cash flow improved in excess of the continued growth in fixed investment, due mainly to a recovery in sales ; and ( 2 ) interest payments decreased, reflecting low interest rates. the sector ’ s fund - raising was at its lowest level since 1956 - - the third year of compilation of the flow of funds accounts - - primarily on account of a net decline in loans, which was more significant than the previous year, particularly in those from private financial institutions. at the same time, financial investment also declined from the previous year. such overall sluggishness of fund - raising and financial investment activities can be attributed to the persisting balance - sheet adjustment pressure. in the personal sector, the financial surplus narrowed, the ratio of financial surplus to nominal gdp marking a record low. this was because ( 1 ) consumption expenditures increased by a larger margin than the improvement in employees ’ income ; and ( 2 ) housing investment increased due to the effects of low interest rates and a surge in demand ahead of the rise in the consumption tax rate in fiscal 1997. both fund - raising and financial investment fell below the previous year ’ s levels, with conspicuous declines in investments in long - term assets such as insurance, securities, and trusts. the outstanding amount of financial assets in the personal sector reached ¥1, 200 trillion for the first time at the end of 1996. in the public sector, a large financial deficit remained, due to expanded public - sector investment during the first half of the year. fund - raising through government bond issues, almost all of which were purchased by the financial sector, marked a record high. profits and balance - sheet developments of japanese banks in fiscal 1996 overview operating profits1

haruhiko kuroda : the bank's semiannual report on currency and monetary control statement by mr haruhiko kuroda, governor of the bank of japan, before the committee on financial affairs, house of councillors, tokyo, 10 november 2022. * * * introduction the bank of japan submits to the diet its semiannual report on currency and monetary control every june and december. i am pleased to have this opportunity today to talk about recent economic and financial developments and about the bank's conduct of monetary policy. i. economic and financial developments i will first explain recent economic and financial developments. japan's economy, despite being affected by factors such as high commodity prices, has picked up as the resumption of economic activity has progressed while public health has been protected from the novel coronavirus ( covid - 19 ). overseas economies have recovered moderately on the whole, but slowdowns have been observed, mainly in advanced economies. exports and industrial production have increased as a trend, with the effects of supply - side constraints waning. corporate profits have been at high levels on the whole, and business sentiment has been more or less unchanged. in this situation, business fixed investment has picked up, although weakness has been seen in some industries. the employment and income situation has improved moderately on the whole. private consumption has increased moderately, despite being affected by covid - 19. with regard to the outlook, japan's economy is likely to recover, with the impact of covid - 19 and supply - side constraints waning and with support from accommodative financial conditions and the government's economic measures, although it is expected to be under downward pressure stemming from high commodity prices and the slowdowns in overseas economies. the year - on - year rate of change in the consumer price index ( cpi ) for all items excluding fresh food has been at around 3 percent due to rises in prices of such items as energy, food, and durable goods. regarding the outlook, it is likely to increase toward the end of this year due to such price rises. the rate of increase is then expected to decelerate toward the middle of fiscal 2023 because the contribution of such price rises to this cpi is likely to wane. thereafter, it is projected to accelerate again moderately on the back of improvement in the output gap and rises in medium - to long - term inflation expectations and in wage growth. 1 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches