The Bank will continue to examine corporate financing as a whole including that of small firms, through various surveys such as the Tankan as well as interviews through the Bank's branch network. III. Conduct of monetary policy  I have explained the developments in the economies at home and abroad as well as the developments in prices.
Based on those developments, I will finally explain the Bank's thinking behind the conduct of monetary policy. The Bank reduced the policy rate to 0.3 percent in October 2008 and to 0.1 percent in December 2008 and has been maintaining the level unchanged since then.