*  *  *  Introduction In the past decade, rapid innovations in the banking sector and the internationalization of financial flows have changed the face of banking almost beyond recognition. The changed environment in which banks find themselves today presents major opportunities for banks but also entails complex and variable risks which challenge the traditional approach to bank risk management.
And I doubt policy would have been eased this week if housing prices had continued their upward march. In each instance, however, policy was motivated not by the desire to achieve any particular level of asset prices, but rather by the Federal Reserve's assessment of how changes in asset prices were affecting the forecast of growth and inflation.