These fundamental changes – deregulation, liberalization and disintermediation – have, not surprisingly, made financial systems far more interconnected, with possible ramifications for contagion in the event of an exigency in any country. As a consequence, central banks, which were traditionally focused on monetary and banking stability, have increasingly come to focus on financial stability as a key concern in the conduct of monetary policy.
Price movements in Japan: deterioration in the supply and demand balance exerts downward pressure  The year-on-year pace of decline in the consumer price index (CPI) excluding fresh food, or the core CPI, has been moderating due to the prices of petroleum products, which are lower than their high levels of a year ago.