The 1992 currency crisis caught Italian households and enterprises severely off balance; the latter, in particular, had built up substantial foreign currency liabilities, trusting in the stability of the exchange rate, even though this confidence was at odds with the expectations implicit in the significantly lower cost of borrowing in foreign currency compared with that in lire.
*  *  *  Members of the Diplomatic Corps Acting President of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Andy Armstrong Members of the private sector Members of the media Distinguished ladies and gentlemen.