The first area is housing: Where do we stand in the housing adjustment, and what effect will recent developments in subprime lending have on that adjustment? The second area is business investment: How should we interpret the incoming data showing that business spending on equipment and software has been weak this year?
Given high debt levels worldwide, we are also broadly supportive of the IMF’s comprehensive work agenda on debt issues. During the first phase of the pandemic shock, major central banks, including the ECB, took coordinated action to enhance the provision of US dollar liquidity.