We pay close attention to those factors that are influencing the outlook for inflation, as for example, the level of resource  2  BIS Review 23/2007  utilization highlighted in our recent announcements. But a clear lesson of the 1970s is that a central bank must keep a very close eye on sustained movements in inflation expectations.
In March, we lowered our policy interest rate to near zero, and we expect to maintain interest rates at this level until we are confident that the economy has weathered recent events and is on track to achieve our maximum-employment and price-stability goals.