significant step toward overcoming deflation and achieving sustainable economic growth. the bank introduced a “ price stability target ” of 2 percent in terms of the year - on - year rate of change in the cpi, and decided that under the price stability target it would pursue monetary easing and aim to achieve this target at the earliest possible time. the bank believes that the achievement of this target, without delay, is its mission of utmost importance. so far the bank – with a view to overcoming deflation – has been purchasing a variety of assets such as sovereign debt as well as corporate bonds, cp, exchange - traded funds ( etfs ), and real estate investment trusts ( reits ). while such purchases go beyond the domain of traditional central bank operations, the scale and type of assets to be purchased have not been sufficient to materialize a strong commitment to achieving 2 percent inflation at the earliest possible time. we need to pursue bold monetary easing both in terms of quantity and quality. moreover, given that there is little room for the interest rate to decline, it is imperative to work on market expectations in the conduct of monetary policy. through communication with the market, we need to make clear that we have adopted the uncompromising stance that we will do whatever is necessary to overcome deflation. furthermore, ensuring cooperation with the government is also important. the effect of monetary policy will be reinforced by maintaining consistency with the government ’ s economic policies. according to the joint statement released by the government and the bank, they will strengthen their policy coordination and work together in order to overcome deflation early and achieve sustainable economic growth with price stability. the government will flexibly manage fiscal policy, formulate measures to strengthen the growth potential and competitiveness of japan ’ s economy, and promote measures aimed at achieving fiscal consolidation in the medium to long term. for its part, the bank will on its own responsibility pursue monetary easing with a view to achieving the price stability target at the earliest possible time. parallel to monetary easing, if the government can take initiatives to create real demand and improve wages and employment through the expansion of consumption and investment, this is expected to contribute to generating a virtuous cycle that will eventually lead to price increases. to avoid an increase in interest rates on the back of declining confidence in fiscal management, it is also important to take measures aimed at achieving fiscal consolidation in the medium to long term. we expect the government to take appropriate actions in line with the joint statement. for the future conduct of monetary policy

october 10, 2019 bank of japan development of asia's capital markets : roles and challenges keynote speech at the asifma annual conference 2019 masayoshi amamiya deputy governor of the bank of japan introduction good morning everyone. it is my great pleasure to be here at the asia securities industry and financial markets association ( asifma ) annual conference 2019. i am honored to address this distinguished audience comprised of representatives from the securities and asset management industries, institutional investors, policy makers, and regulators in asia and other important regions. asia's capital markets have experienced remarkable growth since the asian financial crisis in the late 1990s. asia's share of global stock market capitalization1 soared from 1 percent in 2000 to 15 percent in 2017. notably, the amount outstanding in local currency bond markets in asia as a share of gdp2 in 2018 increased to more than double that in 2000 ( chart 1 ). obviously, the rapid expansion of asian economies has driven the growth of the capital markets in the region. at the same time, the collective efforts of market participants, policy makers, and regulators both at national and regional levels have contributed to market liberalization and enhancement of market infrastructures in asia. typical examples of such regional cooperation include the asian bond markets initiative ( abmi ), launched by the asean + 3, as well as the asian bond fund ( abf ) initiative3 of the executives'meeting of east asia - pacific central banks ( emeap ), which is a group of 11 central banks and monetary authorities in the region. financial industry associations, such as the asifma, have also played a vital role by facilitating dialogue between market participants, promoting regional coordination, and providing necessary recommendations based on figures for " east asia & pacific " ( a country and region grouping employed in the world bank's world development indicators ) excluding high - income countries and regions ( australia, hong kong, japan, south korea, new zealand, and singapore ). 2 based on the aggregated amount outstanding in local currency bond markets in china, hong kong, india, south korea, malaysia, the philippines, singapore, thailand, and vietnam. 3 the asian bond fund ( abf ), established in 2003, is an index bond fund with a two - phase framework, namely, " abf1, " which invested in u. s. dollar bonds, and " abf2, " which invests in local currency bonds and is open to private sector investors. in 2016, because the em