in march and april. also, the growth in broadly - defined liquidity has been declining since the middle of 1997. 1 this report was written based on data and information available when the bank of japan monetary policy meeting was held on may 19, 1998. 2 the bank ’ s view on recent economic and financial developments, determined by the policy board at the monetary policy meeting held on may 19, as the basis of monetary policy decisions. private bank lending remains sluggish. although corporate financing via the capital markets and government financial institutions continues to expand, the increase in overall corporate financing seems to indicate a clear slowdown under the stagnant economic conditions. banks remain cautious in extending loans with a view to improving their medium - term profitability and financial soundness. in the capital markets, the difference in fund - raising costs of firms has remained relatively large according to their creditworthiness. in such circumstances, some firms, especially small and medium - sized firms, have been facing difficult financing conditions and this influence on the economy continues to warrant a careful monitoring. * * * nb this bis review is available on the bis world wide web site ( http : / / www. bis. org ). _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

kikuo iwata : japan ’ s economy and monetary policy speech by mr kikuo iwata, deputy governor of the bank of japan, at a meeting with business leaders, sapporo, 27 may 2015. * * * accompanying charts can be found at the end of the speech. introduction it is my pleasure to have the opportunity today to exchange views with administrative, financial, and business leaders in this region. i would like to take this chance to express my sincerest gratitude for your cooperation with the activities of the bank of japan, particularly of the sapporo branch and the local office in asahikawa. today, i would like to have your views on the actual situation of the local economy as well as your candid opinions about the bank ’ s policies and activities. before exchanging views with you, i will briefly explain the recent economic developments at home and abroad, and then touch on some points regarding the conduct of monetary policy. i. the current situation of and outlook for japan ’ s economy japan ’ s economy has continued to recover moderately in a situation where a virtuous cycle from income to spending has been operating in both the corporate and household sectors. in the following, i would like to elaborate on the background to this assessment and on the outlook for japan ’ s economy in terms of the corporate sector – including exports and production – and then in terms of the household sector – such as the employment and income situation and private consumption. a. corporate sector exports have been picking up recently owing to the recovery in overseas economies and support from the effects of the depreciation of the yen ( chart 1 ). in particular, exports to the united states have continued to see a marked increase since capital goods and parts have increased, reflecting the recovery in business fixed investment in the united states, and since motor vehicles and their related goods have picked up. the global economy, which is the key to projecting the outlook for exports, is expected to moderately increase its growth rate as advanced economies continue to see firm recovery and its positive effects gradually spread to emerging economies. according to the april 2015 world economic outlook ( weo ) released by the international monetary fund ( imf ) last month, global economic growth is projected to accelerate moderately on the whole : after registering 3. 4 percent in 2014, it is projected to be 3. 5 percent in 2015 and 3. 8 percent in 2016 ( chart 2 ). looking specifically at the developments by region, in the united states, which