factors create vulnerabilities that could amplify any negative shock to the economy. chart 3 : household debt as a share of income has continued to increase in canada, in contrast to the united states, where it has fallen index : 2000q1 = 100, quarterly data index 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 ratio in canada adjusted to us concepts sources : federal reserve board via haver analytics, statistics canada and bank of canada calculations ratio in the united states last observation : 2019q2 between 2016 and 2018, a combination of policy measures affecting the housing market were introduced. in addition to higher interest rates, macroprudential measures — including the b - 20 stress test — tightened mortgage lending. in a bid to counter speculation, provincial and municipal governments targeted taxes at non - resident investors. these measures led to moderation of the housing market in many parts of canada and to a drop in house prices in the most overheated markets. starting in late 2018, the canadian economy slowed once again. the cooling housing market and adjustments in the energy sector related to transportation capacity constraints and associated curtailments weighed on growth. weak business investment and exports in the sector contributed to the slowdown. trade conflicts were also a headwind. as an open economy, canada is hurt by the weaker foreign demand and lower commodity prices that come from trade conflicts. the united states is less dependent on trade but, as the conflict has escalated, has increasingly had the added drag of tariffs. both countries — and - 6indeed, the whole world — were adversely affected by the uncertainties around trade conflicts. on the monetary policy front, us inflation has been below target. the fed has cut interest rates three times during 2019. in contrast, the bank of canada has not cut rates. in part, this is because inflation and its outlook remain on target, and also because our policy rate was lower to begin with. moreover, because canada already has high levels of household debt, lowering rates further could make those vulnerabilities worse and amplify future shocks. in sum, there is no reason for the bank of canada to move in step with the fed. on the contrary, the experience of the past decade shows that canada and the united states have followed different roads, reflecting differences in our economic conditions. canada does share many of the same macro fundamentals as the united states. for long periods, the two economies are highly correlated

##demic containment to render policy support to the public ; some made arrangements for fund allocation to shore up supply ; and some opened up green channels to deliver unimpeded services. we rolled out 30 financial support measures, cut the required reserve ratio ( rrr ) three times and launched rmb300 billion lowcost special central bank lending as well as rmb500 billion central bank lending and central bank discounts for the resumption of work and production, to name a few. fighting in solidarity with the people nationwide, the pbc staff spared no efforts to win the fight against the pandemic. now we have managed to achieve the objectives of our monetary policy and china is the only major economy in the world with positive economic growth throughout the year. our endeavors are widely recognized by the financial markets and all sectors of society and are highly appreciated by international organizations and the international community at large. we have always been concerned about the well - being of micro and small businesses ( msbs ), self - employed businesses and other market entities. affected by the pandemic, many msbs faced surging pressures for survival. they are the source of income for millions of families. they fuel the vitality of the market economy and safeguard the national economy and the people ’ s livelihood. holding fast to the two unwavering commitments, we delivered full support to stabilizing businesses and securing employment, increased rmb1 trillion quotas for inclusive central bank lending and central bank discounts, launched two new monetary policy tools providing direct support for the real economy, continuously unleashed the benefits of the loan prime rate ( lpr ) reform, rolled out a mix of measures to enable banks to increase credit 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches supply, prompted financial institutions to cut profits in favor of their clients as appropriate and went all out to reduce the financing cost of the real economy. up to now, banks have deferred repayments on more than rmb6 trillion worth of loans and issued over rmb3 trillion unsecured inclusive msb loans, which benefited more than 30 million business entities. the financial sector has achieved the goal of cutting rmb1. 5 trillion worth of profits in favor of the real economy. we pushed forward with the reform and opening - up of the financial sector and were determined to win the three critical battles. the pbc staff studied the guidelines of the fifth plenary session of the 19th cpc central committee and the 2020 central economic work conference,