in each of their branches. we are delighted to note that all our commercial banks have moved to fulfill the requirement of this policy. some banks have ventured out and taken banking to rural communities in various parts of fiji. another bank is providing microfinance in urban centers ( a great example has been the micro - loans to suva ’ s wheel barrow boys, enabling them to make a start in business ). in addition, banks have conducted microfinance expos to create awareness and extend financial inclusion. we greatly welcome these efforts by banks and encourage them to maintain the momentum. the rbf has now been able to interface more closely with other development agencies and financial institutions in promoting microfinance schemes around the country. last month, we hosted the first ever rbf microfinance expo in ba. the event was well received by the community and we were fully supported by all the banks, ngos, mobile phone providers, non bank financial institutions, the national centre for small and medium enterprise development and other stakeholders. of course the micro entrepreneurs were also able to display and sell their wares. the expo provided the opportunity for the financial institutions and others to enlighten the public about their financial and microfinance services. the rbf will continue to take a lead where necessary to encourage micro finance activities and take the providers to the people. we plan to host a similar expo in suva during the upcoming hibiscus carnival in august and later on in the north. v. local advisory boards to help drive our initiatives, ladies and gentlemen, the reserve bank recently issued a guideline to banks on the establishment of a local advisory board within their fiji operations. these boards are aimed at assisting foreign - owned banks to better understand and align their strategies, not only to fiji ’ s regulatory and supervisory environment, but more importantly to the national development objectives, such as microfinance activities and the like. the local advisory boards in each bank will comprise local individuals who would bring unique local knowledge and skills to complement that of the expatriate senior executive management, to enable them to gain a heightened awareness of our environment from a fiji perspective. the local advisory boards will play an advisory role to the main board of each bank and membership must be approved by the rbf. at this point in time the banks have made good progress in putting their respective boards in place with members of 3 banks having already been assessed and approved. we are looking forward to their contribution to their banks and to our country ’

first is a slowdown in industrial production, which has resulted mainly from persistent contraction in mining, dominated by falling oil output. second, the manufacturing sector has been deterred largely by a deceleration in u. s. industry in 2015, affected by another severe winter and declining energy investment in the face of significantly lower energy prices. modest mexican manufacturing activity is in line with less vigorous exports to the united states in spite of substantial real peso depreciation. we expect these factors to be transitory and momentum for mexican exports to pick up once again. third, domestic spending has remained tepid, as indicated by damp investment growth and a measured pace for recovering private consumption. the main weight on domestic spending does not seem to come from the labor market, where unemployment continues to drop and labor force participation remains stable. nor does it seem to stem from a lack of domestic financing, the growth of which has been gaining steam. more likely causes are disappointing trends in consumer confidence, which has not seen a previously hoped - for rebound, and in producer confidence, which keeps on declining. analysts ’ consensus is for a moderate and gradual mexican economic upturn in tandem with that of the united states. the bank of mexico forecasts growth of 1. 7 to 2. 5 percent this year, and 2. 5 to 3. 5 percent in 2016. 8 downside risks to growth likely predominate. these include further reductions in oil extraction, less robust - than - expected u. s. industrial production, and continued fragile consumer and producer sentiment. structural reforms currently underway in mexico could enhance long - term productivity growth. however, eventual benefits will take time to show - up, and success crucially depends on careful and deep implementation. changes in the energy sector may prove particularly attractive to texan investors. new possibilities in oil extraction, as well as opportunities in natural gas transportation and electricity generation, among others, provide for tantalizing potential investments. for an analysis of net capital flows to emerging economies, see institute of international finance ( 2015 ). “ don ’ t panic! em capital flows have weakened, but not collapsed, ” iif report, august. for a brief overview of ongoing mexican structural reforms, see sanchez, m. ( 2015 ). “ mexico ’ s reforms progress and economic outlook, ” speech given at the 2015 iif latin america economic forum, busan, republic of korea, march. see blue chip economic indicators, september 2015, and banco de mexico ( 2015 )