command trust from investors and the public. for these reasons, the reputable credit agencies have still reaffirmed their positive assessment of the thai economy. indeed, the recent economic conditions have underscored the importance of preserving sound macroeconomic fundamentals in order to create resilience in the face of unexpected shocks. domestically, the recent economic slowdown has put some small businesses and indebted households under financial strains. loan quality has deteriorated somewhat, with npl increasing slightly as a result, but these risks have been contained to specific sectors. the banking system and corporate sector remain strong and have coped with the slowdown well, owing to their improved risk management policies. externally, like many emerging markets, thailand faced a couple episodes of capital flow volatility in recent years. the economy, however, has withstood these challenges reasonably well. for instance, during the “ taper tantrum ” in may 2013 and our own political unrest towards the end of 2013, thai baht had swung by more than 10 percent in a year, fluctuating from 30 baht per us dollar to 28 and back to close to 33 baht. despite this volatility, market reactions ( in terms of outflows ) have been relatively dampened. foreign participation in the thai bond market decreased from a peak of 13 percent to the current level of around 10 percent of total outstanding public sector bond. the strong local institutional investor base was able to pick up from where foreigners left. despite foreigners exiting the thai bond market, total portfolio outflows last year ( 2014 ) amounted to a mere 1 percent of our international reserves. a flexible exchange rate, a relatively balanced external position and a modest external exposure, altogether acting as the first line of defence, contributed to the success. the bank of thailand is also equipped with comprehensive policy tools, along with ample international reserves, that can be used as a backstop to deal with disruptive capital flows and to examples of anti - corruption measures are 1 ) the construction sector transparency initiative ( cost ) which promotes transparency in state enterprise projects and 2 ) integrity pacts which oversee purchase plans of government and state enterprise projects. among the big projects already implemented are 1 ) suvarnabhumi airport phase ii 2 ) the blue line metro extension, and 3 ) bangkok ngv bus purchase plan. total corporate debt / total corporate equity. bis central bankers ’ speeches safeguard financial stability. in fact, these are our multiple lines of defence available at our disposal.

and other properties owned or acquired ( ropoa ) s to various jvas with real estate developers. at present, ropoa still accounts to 46. 0 percent of the banking system ’ s overall level of npas. at present, there are 4 microfinance - oriented rural banks and 158 rural banks engaged in some level of microfinance with a total loan portfolio of p2. 3 billion catering to a total of 441, 963 borrowers. recently allowed the selective 6 lifting of moratorium on bank branching to facilitate the expansion of financial services in underserved areas. under circular no. 505, we foresee, among others ; the growth of bank microfinancing to benefit rural folks with greater access to formal banking services that in turn, mobilizes savings and investments. moreover, we foresee an accelerated consolidation process in the banking industry in the next 3 years. this will be brought about by ( 1 ) a stronger regulatory framework that will hasten the exit of weak banks, hopefully on a voluntary and market - based basis ; ( 2 ) the increasingly stronger competition by new foreign investors coming in, in existing banks ; and ( 3 ) the rigorous technical demands posed by modern banking and finance standards. all these changes will dramatically transform the competitive environment. down the road, we see a banking landscape characterized by a handful of main banks complemented by an abundance of smaller banks that serve various well defined market niches. final note in closing, let me call on this generation of the family behind rang - ay bank to transform these reform initiatives into opportunities and further stretch your vision over the next years to come. with your wealth of experience, rang - ay can lead in turning the heavy flywheel of remaining reforms for the rural banking industry. i trust that rang - ay will harness its core expertise, geographic advantage and strong ties with the community in promoting a safe, sound and responsive banking system. let us all work together in keeping the wheels of change turning. agyamannak ( thank you ) and happy anniversary! prohibition on bank branching remains in the cities of makati, mandaluyong, manila, paranaque, pasay, pasig and quezon including the municipality of san juan.