, schularick, and taylor ( 2017 : p. 8 ) shows the capital ratio, averages by year for 17 countries. the blue line plots the mean of capital ratios in the sample countries between 1870 and 2013. the red line refers to the median of the sample countries. the grey area is the min - max range for the 17 countries in our sample. details are given in the original paper. source : jorda, richter, schularick, and taylor graph 6 : bank nonperforming loans ( % of total loans ) graph 6 shows the development of non - performing loans to gross loans ( the total value of the loan portfolio including nonperforming loans before the deduction of specific loan - loss provisions ). vertical line separates the pre - crisis period ( up to 2007 ) from the crisis period ( as of 2008 ). france in % germany greece italy spain us source : world bank graph 7 : gross domestic product ( annual growth rate ) graph 7 shows the development of the growth rate of the gross domestic product in the us and the eu15. the eu15 comprises the following 15 countries : austria, belgium, denmark, finland, france, germany, greece, ireland, italy, luxembourg, netherlands, portugal, spain, sweden, united kingdom. vertical line separates the pre - crisis period ( up to 2007 ) from the crisis period ( as of 2008 ). in % us eu15 - 2 - 4 - 6 source : oecd graph 8 : gross domestic product ( annual growth rate ) graph 8 shows the development of the growth rate of the gross domestic product in the us and selected european countries. vertical line separates the pre - crisis period ( up to 2007 ) from the crisis period ( as of 2008 ). france in % germany greece - 2 italy - 4 spain us - 6 - 8 - 10 source : oecd graph 9 : gross fixed capital formation ( annual growth rate ) graph 9 shows the development of the growth rate of capital formation. gross fixed capital formation ( gfcf ) is defined as the acquisition ( including purchases of new or second - hand assets ) and creation of assets by producers for their own use, minus disposals of produced fixed assets. the relevant assets relate to products that are intended for use in the production of other goods and services for a period of more than one year. vertical line separates the pre - crisis period ( up to 2007 ) from the crisis period ( as of 2008 ). france in % germany

that this sense is more palpable in the current environment for a number of reasons that i would like to explore this morning. let me begin with the global financial crisis. while it is largely associated with a banking crisis, its implications have spread far beyond the banking sector. the insurance industry found itself in a position of having to defend its activities from being subjected to the same fate of the wide - ranging regulatory reform that has consumed the banking sector following the crisis. the loss of confidence in financial intermediaries has been particularly damaging. consumer confidence and trust in financial intermediaries have fallen to all - time lows and continuing discoveries of misconduct have done little to restore confidence. consumers are unfortunately prone to painting all intermediaries with the same broad brush and asking themselves how far they can trust their financial service providers. as a result, conduct issues are coming under significant scrutiny globally, and the expectation of professional conduct is no longer taken for granted by consumers and regulators alike. this general shake - up of the industry that followed the crisis has meant that insurance brokers, swept up in the tide, must confront the very basic ethos of their business. they must make serving the real economic interests of businesses and helping individuals secure their financial futures the heart of their business. they need to be concerned about bis central bankers ’ speeches the social and environmental impact of the business decisions that they make. and they must commit to providing a fair deal to their customers and building enduring long term relationships. the environment has become far more unforgiving of anything less. a second reason that insurance broking is at a critical crossroad is the accelerated pace of change that is occurring in asia and the business implications that this will have for the region. asia is the most dynamic and fastest growing region in the world today. the region recorded economic growth of over 7 percent in the past decade, higher than global growth of 4 percent. the imf ’ s latest forecast projects growth for asia at 6. 4 and 6. 2 percent in 2015 and 2016 respectively, in sharp contrast with anaemic growth in more advanced economies. reflecting its growing contribution to global growth, asia accounted for approximately 28 % of the world ’ s premiums, after europe ( 35 % ) and north america ( 30 % ). 1 coupled with a high population growth rate, there are projections that asia will overtake north america as the second largest contributor to world insurance premiums in several years. the establishment of the asean economic community at the