This will, however, coincide with the adverse demographics of Europe and Japan contributing to contraction of world savings. Various questions arise. Will we then see a hardening of world real interest rates? What will be the new challenges that we, as monetary authorities, will face in the years to come? How soon will this reversal take place in global imbalances?
Such a pattern of urban growth will probably necessitate higher degree of infrastructure investment – both intra-urban and inter-urban in order to ensure international economic competitiveness. 8  BIS Review 60/2006  IV.