In Australia, we've also had especially strong employment growth over the past year – more than double the rate of growth in the working-age population. But that hasn't translated into strong  consumption growth. Household income growth has been weak for a number of years, and that has weighed on consumption growth (Graph 4). Consumption growth hasn't slowed as much as income growth.
While today’s webinar is no substitute for face-to-face meetings with bankers, it is a special treat to be able to leverage technology to speak to and hear from so many community bankers across the country at the same time. As all of you surely know, community banks play a vital role in the U.S. financial system.