will increase at an annual pace of about 50 trillion yen. in addition, the bank decided that jgbs with all maturities including 40 - year bonds will be made eligible for purchase, and the average remaining maturity of the bank ’ s jgb purchases will be extended from slightly less than three years at present to about seven years – equivalent to the average maturity of the amount outstanding of jgbs issued. third, with a view to lowering risk premia of asset prices, the bank decided to purchase exchange - traded funds ( etfs ) and japan real estate investment trusts ( j - reits ) so that their amounts outstanding will increase at an annual pace of 1 trillion yen and 30 billion yen, respectively. bis central bankers ’ speeches fourth, the bank decided to continue with the quantitative and qualitative monetary easing, which consists of the above measures i have just explained, with the aim of achieving the price stability target of 2 percent, as long as it is necessary for maintaining that target in a stable manner. the bank will examine both upside and downside risks to economic activity and prices, and make adjustments as appropriate. fifth, the bank decided to terminate the asset purchase program and temporarily suspend the so - called banknote principle as it implements these measures. these measures are very drastic, and i would like to point out the main features, as follows. first, the bank fundamentally reconstructed the framework of monetary policy, bearing in mind the importance of clearly communicating to the markets and the public its aggressive monetary easing stance to achieve the price stability target of 2 percent. to this end, the bank first made a clear commitment to achieving the price stability target of 2 percent at the earliest possible time, with a time horizon of about two years, and as a new framework for achieving this target, it introduced a new guideline for money market operations with the monetary base set as the main operating target. second, the bank had previously been strengthening its monetary easing gradually while examining the effects of easing. this time, however, it took all possible measures that were considered necessary at present. third, the bank took very drastic measures both in terms of the scale ( quantity ) and contents ( quality ) of its asset purchases. on the quantity side, the bank will double the monetary base in two years – that is, it will conduct money market operations so that the monetary base will increase at an annual pace of about 60 – 70 trillion yen. the bank will more than double the amount outstanding of its jgb

the end of september due to the rapid appreciation of the yen and growing concern over price adjustments. however, they recovered after the rebound in u. s. stock prices. the nikkei 225 stock average is moving at around 10, 500 yen. in the foreign exchange market, the yen rose sharply as market participants became less sensitive to a possible market intervention around the time of the g - 7 meeting and as foreign investors continued to invest in japanese stocks. the yen is currently traded in the range of 109 - 111 yen to the u. s. dollar. with regard to corporate finance, private banks remain cautious in extending loans to firms with high credit risks, while they continue to be more active in extending loans to blue - chip companies. their lending attitudes seem to be becoming slightly more accommodative in areas such as terms and conditions for loans. meanwhile, the lending attitudes of financial institutions as perceived by firms in general are improving somewhat, although those perceived by small firms remain severe. in the corporate bond and cp markets, the issuance spreads remain steady and the favorable issuing environment is virtually unchanged on the whole, especially for firms with high credit ratings, although some firms still seem to be taking a wait - and - see attitude in the corporate bond issuance market in view of the rise in long - term interest rates. credit demand in the private sector continues to follow a downtrend, mainly because firms ’ cash flow remains above business fixed investment and firms are continuously reducing their debts. amid these developments, private banks ’ lending continues to decline at around 2 percent on a yearon - year basis. the amount outstanding of cp issued is above the previous year ’ s level. the amount outstanding of corporate bonds issued is around the previous year ’ s level. meanwhile, according to business surveys, the financial positions of firms in general are improving slightly, although those of small firms remain severe. the year - on - year growth rate of the monetary base continues to be around 20 percent. the year - onyear growth rate of the money stock is around 2 percent. funding costs for firms continue to be at extremely low levels on the whole, although corporate bond issuance rates are increasing slightly reflecting the rise in long - term interest rates. against the above background, the financial developments are summarized as follows. money market conditions continue to be extremely easy. meanwhile, long - term interest rates are at a slightly lower level than last month. stock prices are basically around the same level as last month. growth