slow. don ’ t want to run fast ; don ’ t blame your neighbour if he wins the race. suffice it to say that the bank of mauritius has been the fastest institution in the last eight years. the bank, not to say i, has been the first in sub - saharan africa to have a real time gross settlement system. the bank has been the first to have a credit information bureau in sub - saharan africa. the bank has given mauritius an unprecedented level of foreign exchange reserves despite difficult economic circumstances. the bank has given mauritius the lowest average rate of inflation in the last eight years. the bank has been the first in sub - saharan africa to embark with full cooperation from all the bankers on the project for implementation of basel ii. the bank has been the first in a few other areas. the bank has successfully pushed private enterprises to go for efficient treasury management in the last eight years. all the chief executive officers in the banking industry understood in 1999 the way forward. they have been running fast. and they are winning. the banking industry is far sounder and resilient today than it was eight years back. ladies and gentlemen, may i, on behalf of my wife and my two daughters and on my own behalf, wish you and your family a merry xmas and a happy new year. thank you.

let me close with some remarks about the canadian economy. as we noted in our december policy announcement, the outlook for the world economy has deteriorated significantly since october. the global recession will be broader and deeper than previously anticipated. global financial markets remain severely strained. measures taken by major governments are beginning to encourage credit flows, although it will take more time before conditions in those markets normalize. in addition, monetary and fiscal policy actions announced late in 2008 are expected to support global economic growth. nonetheless, the canadian economy is entering a recession as a result of the weakness in global economic activity, the associated decline in our terms of trade, and the drop in household and business confidence. the depreciation of the canadian dollar is providing an important offset to the effects of weaker global demand and lower commodity prices, and the monetary policy actions taken in october and december ( a 150 - basis - point reduction in the policy interest rate ) will provide timely and significant support to the canadian economy. as we prepare for the next interest rate announcement on 20 january, and the update to the bank's monetary policy report two days later, we will continue to monitor carefully economic and financial developments in judging to what extent further monetary stimulus will be required to achieve the 2 per cent inflation target over the medium term. conclusion in conclusion, let me stress again the importance of sound risk management for financial system stability. risk cannot be avoided ; it must be anticipated and managed. the current crisis has exposed serious flaws in prevailing risk - management models and showed ways to enhance our ability to manage risk. policy - makers are also considering steps to make the financial system more resilient so that we may be better prepared for the next storm. thank you for your attention. i'd now be pleased to take your questions.