to ccc +, still below the previous level. although the financial system in the caribbean has a strong presence of canadian banks, which has helped to limit the contagion impact of the global crisis, financial stress still exists across the region. credit quality, particularly for indigenous banks, has deteriorated in light of the downturn, coupled with weak oversight and low loan provisioning ratios. high exposure to sovereigns ( including to those that have recently restructured or about to restructure debt ) requires regional central banks to keep closer oversight and stand ready to intervene, if necessary. on the nonbank side, almost four years after the collapse of the insurance subsidiaries of the cl financial group, resolution has been uneven. in trinidad and tobago, the recent launch of the clico investment fund ( cif ) has brought some closure to the settlement of claims due to clico policyholders, but has come at considerable cost to the state. contingent liabilities associated with the resolution in trinidad and tobago have reached an estimated one - tenth of gdp. in barbados, the resolution is still pending. in the eastern caribbean currency union ( eccu ), where insurance claims exceed 17 percent of gdp, part of the insurance subsidiary is being sold, and a fraction of the claims are pending a regional resolution. with predominantly fixed exchange rate regimes in the carciom region ( 10 out of 14 countries ) inclusive of a currency board arrangement for the eastern caribbean, devaluation is not an option for caribbean countries to support their weakening external bis central bankers ’ speeches positions. barbados, in particular, remains vehemently opposed to such an action, which it considers ill - conceived and will not correct fundamental economic problems facing small, middle - income caribbean countries. the caribbean region as a whole, therefore, needs to explore innovative sources of financing to contain the onerous public debt overhang, regain fiscal stability and strengthen economic growth. diaspora bonds – an innovative financing solution ladies and gentlemen, beyond managing the near - term risks associated with the global crisis, the caribbean region must continue to address its fundamental economic issues over the medium term, paying particular attention to the legacies of the crisis. in this regard, i firmly believe that caribbean policymakers will need to adopt innovative financing solutions in support of the region ’ s economic growth, transformation and development. many of you may be aware that the caribbean has a large, highly educated diaspora pool. using a well - established world bank methodology and adopting a narrow but useful definition of the diaspora

bank of japan ’ s january report of recent economic and financial developments 1 bank of japan, 20 january 2006. * * * the bank ’ s view 2 japan's economy continues to recover steadily. exports have continued to increase, and the uptrend in industrial production has become evident. business fixed investment has continued to increase against the background of high corporate profits. household income has also continued rising moderately, reflecting the improvement in employment and wages. in this situation, private consumption has been steady. housing investment has continued to show some strength. meanwhile, public investment has basically been on a downtrend. japan's economy is expected to continue to recover steadily. exports are expected to continue rising against the background of the expansion of overseas economies. domestic private demand is likely to continue increasing against the background of high corporate profits and the moderate rise in household income, while structural adjustment pressure, such as the excess debt of firms, has almost dissipated. in light of these increases in demand both at home and abroad, production is also expected to follow an increasing trend. public investment, meanwhile, is projected to remain on a downtrend. on the price front, domestic corporate goods prices have continued to increase, mainly reflecting the rise in international commodity prices and the depreciation of the yen in the second half of last year. the year - on - year rate of change in consumer prices ( excluding fresh food ) has turned slightly positive. domestic corporate goods prices are expected to continue increasing for the time being, mainly due to the effects of the rise in international commodity prices. as for the year - on - year rate of change in consumer prices, a positive trend is projected to be established, as supply - demand conditions continue improving gradually and the effects from the reduction in telephone charges dissipate. as for the financial environment, the environment for corporate finance is becoming more accommodative on the whole. the issuing environment for cp and corporate bonds is favorable. also, the lending attitude of private banks is becoming more accommodative. the lending attitude of financial institutions as perceived by firms has been improving. the pace of decline in credit demand in the private sector is very moderate. under these circumstances, the rate of increase in the amount outstanding of lending by private banks is accelerating, and the amount outstanding of cp and corporate bonds issued has been above the previous year's level. the year - on - year growth rate of the monetary base is 1. 0 percent, and that of