The existing Law is inappropriate for a modern central bank. It is true that for many years the Bank of Israel has had an ordered, professional decision-making process in which the relevant departments and professional parties are involved, which helped my predecessors to make decisions. Nevertheless, under the current Law the final authority and responsibility for decisions rests with the Governor alone.
There are some signs that credit markets, while still quite strained, are improving. Interbank short-term funding rates have fallen notably since mid-October, and we are seeing greater stability in money market mutual funds and in the commercial paper market. Interest rates on higher-rated bonds issued by corporations and municipalities have fallen somewhat, and bond issuance for these entities rose a bit in recent weeks.