1 ) a significant improvement in corporate profits, particularly among large manufacturing firms, resulting from the successful restructuring efforts and the depreciation of the yen from the middle of 1995 ; ( 2 ) progress in the reorganization of the international production system as seen in the shift in japan ’ s exports and production toward more capital - and technology - intensive goods ; and ( 3 ) increased business fixed investment in new sectors owing to technological innovations and deregulation in information and communications industries. with regard to balance - sheet adjustments, strong adjustment pressures remained throughout fiscal 1996, as seen in the persistently high level of the ratio of debts to assets, especially among small nonmanufacturing firms. in fiscal 1996, weakening of prices came to a halt. domestic wholesale prices followed a downward trend until the middle of 1996, but in the second half of fiscal 1996 they virtually stopped declining, owing to a moderate improvement in domestic supply and demand conditions, as well as a rise in import prices reflecting the depreciation of the yen and the rise in crude oil prices. in march 1997, the year - to - year change shifted from decline to increase. although corporate service prices continued to decline compared to the level of the previous year, reflecting the decrease in leasing prices and real estate rents, the year - to - year declines were smaller in the second half of fiscal 1996, due to a recovery in demand for services following the improvement in corporate profits. consumer prices ( nationwide, excluding perishables ) also increased by a slightly wider margin from the previous year owing to a smaller decline in commodity prices as a result of the depreciation of the yen, and the halt in the decline in domestic wholesale prices, as well as a gradual increase in service prices. while prices seemed to have stopped declining, the increase in import prices from the depreciation of the yen and higher crude oil prices had little impact on domestic prices, as there remained persistent downward pressures on prices from imports of manufactured goods, particularly final goods, and technological innovations. as for commercial land, prices for large and well - located plots of land suitable for development virtually stopped declining owing mainly to the gradual progress in stock adjustment for office space. however, the prices of smaller plots of land with limited commercial value continued to decline. the recent development in commercial land prices thus indicates a distinct splitting into two groups. meanwhile, residential land prices are bottoming out, reflecting the high level of residential housing construction. the cyclical momentum for economic recovery gathered strength in fiscal

##rate the need for improved financial literacy is gradually taking hold in japan. in the council ’ s survey, we ask about the “ purpose of holding financial assets. ” the reply chosen most often had long been “ preparation for illness and unexpected emergency. ” but in 2013, this changed for the first time in its 60 - year history to “ funds for life during my retirement period. ” this is symbolic for japan, which has a well - developed public pension system. bis central bankers ’ speeches the financial behavior of japanese people has changed accordingly. households ’ financial assets1 have increased by around 20 percent over the last decade ; that is, the period before and after the global financial crisis. notably, the amount held by people aged 60 years and older has reached 25 million yen per household. this is almost the same level as the “ target amount of funds you regard as necessary ” in the survey. financial assets are being accumulated to ensure a stable living standard over an individual ’ s retirement period. however, there are worrisome signs that financial literacy associated with lifetime planning has been undermined. as i mentioned earlier, households ’ financial assets have been growing. however, at the same time, the number of households that do not have such assets has been increasing recently. this trend has been observed in a wide range of income groups, including the highincome group. the backgrounds to this are varied, and problems related to financial literacy represent one of the factors. one example is a weaker awareness of the importance of lifetime planning. there are various concerns regarding children as well. in this affluent society that is undergoing demographic changes and rapid progress in technology, children could lose their sense of the value of money. for example, we have the so - called “ six pocket problem. ” this refers to a phenomenon in which a child is indulged with money given by the parents and grandparents of both the father and mother. another is the “ invisible money problem ” ; that is, a situation in which a child does not feel that they actually paid a price for something, given the increasing use of electronic money. in both cases, children have fewer opportunities to realize, through the first - hand experience of using physical money, that there are limits to the money we can spend. we must keep up with these developments, as lifestyles and values have become diverse and everyday life is more dependent on and convenient with technology. however, we still need to understand that there are limits to the goods we can own