the bank will draw up a scheme for implementation as early as possible. as i have just explained, the bank has been implementing various measures in rapid succession since the autumn of last year. the end of the fiscal year is only a few days away, but financial markets in japan have so far remained relatively stable, as firms and financial institutions have strived to secure liquidity in a planned manner at an early stage and the bank has provided large amounts of liquidity at a faster pace than in ordinary years. however, as i explained previously, japan's economic and financial conditions will likely continue to be severe. in this situation, the bank's policy priority will be placed, for the time being, on securing market stability and facilitating corporate financing – the second and third main areas of the bank's conduct of monetary policy. in any event, the bank will continue to examine carefully developments in financial markets and corporate financing and to take necessary measures in a decisive manner without any predetermined view. closing remarks today i explained economic and financial developments at home and abroad and the policy responses of the authorities around the world, including the bank of japan. as i said at the beginning of this speech, the current economic downturn is a process of correcting various imbalances that had accumulated over the past several years, and the severe situation will therefore likely continue for some time. i believe that otaru has also been significantly affected by the global economic downturn, with a sharp drop in exports to russia and a decrease in the number of domestic and foreign tourists. it is also true, however, that both domestic and overseas financial markets, especially money markets, have started to gradually regain stability. furthermore, the effects of major countries'fiscal and monetary policies, as well as measures implemented to secure the stability of financial systems, are expected to be felt gradually. however, we must bear in mind the important fact that these policies and measures can only temporarily mitigate financial and economic shocks and reduce the degree of the economic downturn – in other words, they are merely measures to buy time. resolution of various excesses in the private sector and the subsequent establishment of new business models are indispensable for realizing sustainable economic growth in the medium to long term. fiscal and monetary policies are no more than a support to facilitate adjustments in and the positive efforts of the private sector. japan's economy has been exposed to many severe downturns over the decades, but every time it enhanced its capability

, and the risk that wages and prices will rise beyond the price stability target warrants attention. the second is downside risks to overseas economies. inflation rates in the united states and europe, which were at high levels, have been steadily declining recently. however, there are uncertainties as to how the past policy interest rate hikes by overseas central banks will affect the real economy and financial activity over time. moreover, at the beginning of august 2024, data suggesting a possible slowdown in the u. s. economy triggered market developments over concerns of a sharp economic downturn, or a hard landing. attention is warranted over the risk of continued excessive movements and adjustments in financial markets - - stemming from these concerns over a slowdown in overseas economies - - exerting further downward pressure on overseas economies and eventually spreading to japan's economy. the third risk is that delayed improvement in consumer sentiment will disrupt the virtuous cycle from income to spending. households have so far been defensive about spending, mainly because the rate of increase in the price of everyday goods such as food and daily necessities has been relatively high and growth in real income has been negative. it is true that private consumption has shown resilience thanks to improvement in the income situation, with the year - on - year rate of change in real wages turning positive recently, together with firms'initiatives and the effects of various government measures. however, i believe it is still necessary to monitor this situation carefully, as the previous prolonged negative growth in real income may hamper future improvement in consumer sentiment. iii. the bank's conduct of monetary policy 5 / 7 bis - central bankers'speeches next, i would like to talk about the bank's decisions made at the july 2024 mpm and share my views in this regard. the first point concerns the change in the bank's guideline for money market operations ( chart 12 ). specifically, the bank decided to raise the target for its policy interest rate, the uncollateralized overnight call rate, from the previous level of " around 0 to 0. 1 percent " to " around 0. 25 percent. " at the july mpm, the bank assessed that, while japan's economic activity and prices had been developing generally in line with its outlook presented in the outlook report, upside risks to prices required attention given that, for example, the year - on - year rate of change in import prices had recently turned positive again. in view of