sector, in general, and the banking sector, in particular, concurrent with the well - calibrated de - regulation process already set in motion. the liberalisation measures would need to take into account several imperatives, such as, consolidation of domestic banking sector ; restructuring of development finance institutions ; and appropriate timing for the significant entry of foreign banks so as to be co - terminus with the transition to greater capital account convertibility while being consistent with our continuing obligation under the wto commitments. it is also necessary to examine several issues relating to implementation of the press note no. 2 not in isolation but as part of overall reform paradigm of the banking sector. in respect of foreign banks, issues include : choice of the mode of presence, acceptable transition path, according national treatment, addressing supervisory concerns, linkages between foreign banks and their presence in other ( non - banking ) financial services and the timing of various measures as per a road map to be drawn up. reserve bank intends to formulate the guidelines, through an ongoing process of consultation, as in the past. the proposed guidelines in this regard are expected to carry forward the process of financial integration of india in a carefully calibrated and transparent manner. thank you, ladies and gentlemen. let me wish you all the best in your careers ; and, that would ensure that my grand children will also be the beneficiaries of a happier india.

housing investment as a percentage of gdp. however, even here prices and wages comprise a problem for the industry. the preliminary results show that construction workers received wage increases in excess of 5 per cent last year, while productivity only amounted to 1. 4 per cent and unemployment among construction workers was almost 10 per cent. unemployment in the construction industry varies geographically, however, with a rate of under 3 per cent in stockholm and over 19 per cent in, for instance, the gavleborg and norrbotten regions. relative productivity in the construction sector appears to be declining. the gap between the percentage employed and the percentage of gdp is increasing. this means that every person employed in the construction industry is providing a declining contribution to gdp, in relative terms. during most of the 1990s this difference increased, but it has recovered somewhat in recent years. this can perhaps be partly explained by the fact that there is still a large manual element that it is neither desirable nor possible to eliminate. at the same time, it is probable that the entire industry has a lower degree of rationalisation than other industries. this is also visible in the development of prices for both construction services and building materials, which is far above other industrial products, despite a relatively weak demand ( oh 3 development of prices for building materials ). there is something unhealthy in an industry where wages and prices rise despite a relatively weak demand and lingering unemployment in the industry as a whole. let me conclude by saying that a recover in the swedish economy is under way and that the swedish economy has a good foundation on which to build, with a surplus in both our public finances and in sweden ’ s international trade. inflation is hopefully on the way down. at the same time, wage formation and pricing behaviour in general comprise an element of uncertainty as economic activity begins to pick up. personally, i consider that this indicates a possibility that further interest rate hikes will be necessary in future. however, the next monetary policy step depends, as always, on what happens and the analyses we make. there is always uncertainty and we have now tightened up monetary policy by 0. 5 percentage points. outcome and forecasts of und1x made at different points in time 4. 0 3. 5 4. 0 ir 02 : 1 ir 01 : 4 ir 01 : 3 ir 01 : 2 ir 01 : 1 ir 00 : 4 ir 00 : 3 ir 00 : 2 ir 00 : 1 utfall 3. 5 3. 0 3. 0 2