there may be ways to more effectively incorporate community engagement into the process — for example, by having the banking agencies develop a joint community contacts database to facilitate access to information from local community stakeholders. conclusion overall, i have been impressed with the number of organizations that took the time to comment on the occ ’ s anpr to and attend the federal reserve ’ s outreach meetings. it is encouraging to see the high level of commitment to the cra from banks and community organizations alike. as we think about the path forward, it is important that we retain the cra ’ s core focus on place while improving upon the regulation ’ s flexibility in order to provide meaningful cra evaluations of banks that largely deliver their products and services digitally. we want whatever we design to be clear and more predictable for banks in order to promote more and more impactful cra activity. taken together, changes to the cra regulations ’ definition of assessment areas and performance test structure, along with improved metrics based on better data have the potential to enhance the regulations and better serve its purpose of encouraging banks to help meet the credit needs of low - and moderate - income communities. we understand and appreciate that banks want to be able to make plans and manage their risks carefully through clearer standards regarding what counts, where it will be counted, and how. if we can address these suggestions effectively, banks will be more effective in addressing the needs of their local communities and in some cases extend their activities to benefit chronically underserved communities. i will be interested to hear whether some of the ideas i have shared today resonate with you. i want to assure you that we will continue to engage with bank and community stakeholders to find a path forward that honors the purpose of the cra by encouraging banks to attend to the credit needs of their local communities and to better address the needs of underserved areas. this engagement will be vital as we join together with the other banking agencies to formulate regulatory changes that preserve what is best about cra while ensuring its value and relevance for another generation. 1 i am grateful to theresa stark of the federal reserve board for her assistance in preparing this text. these remarks represent my own views, which do not necessarily represent those of the federal reserve board or the federal open market committee. 2 the banking agencies are the federal reserve, the office of the comptroller of the currency, and the federal 6 / 7 bis central bankers'speeches deposit insurance corporation. the ratings are : outstanding, satisfactory

november 4, 2020 bank of japan japan's economy and monetary policy speech at a meeting with business leaders in nagoya ( via webcast ) kuroda haruhiko governor of the bank of japan ( english translation based on the japanese original ) introduction it is my great pleasure to have the opportunity today to exchange views with a distinguished gathering of business leaders in the chubu region. i would like to take this chance to express my sincerest gratitude for your cooperation with activities of the bank of japan's nagoya branch. the biggest issue since the last time we met one year ago is the novel coronavirus ( covid - 19 ) pandemic, which has been widely affecting economic and financial activities, as well as social life. actually, given the impact of covid - 19, it has been decided that this year's meeting will be held online. today, while outlining the outlook for economic activity and prices ( outlook report ) released last week, i would like to explain the bank's view on japan's economic activity and prices, which have been affected by covid - 19, and its thinking behind the recent conduct of monetary policy. i. developments in economic activity and prices let me start by talking about economic developments. japan's economy has picked up with economic activity resuming, although it has remained in a severe situation due to the impact of covid - 19. unlike around spring, when economic activity was constrained, japan is now taking targeted preventive measures and improving economic activity simultaneously. in this situation, it is becoming evident that the economy has bottomed out in the april - may period. on the other hand, it has been reconfirmed that there is less of a likelihood that the economy will improve steadily and smoothly, as seen in a pause in the pick - up in services consumption around summer, when the number of confirmed new cases of covid - 19 increased. next, i will briefly explain developments in respective demand components behind the outlook for japan's economy. first is developments in overseas economies and external demand. overseas economies have picked up from a state of significant depression. the gdp growth rates for the april - june quarter registered the largest - ever negative figures in many countries. thereafter, those for the july - september quarter seem to have turned positive, mainly due to a resumption of economic activities and the materialization of pent - up demand. overseas economies are likely to continue improving, but the pace is expected to be only moderate