The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which is responsible to the Congress for the management of the critical deposit-insurance portion of the safety net, has underlined the importance of that minimum leverage ratio and PCA as part of a prudent supervisory regime. The Federal Reserve concurs with the FDIC's view.
The increase in the construction floor area has recently been weak, but it is following a moderate recovery trend. With respect to housing investment, housing starts in terms of the seasonallyadjusted annual rate reached a substantially high level in the fourth quarter 1996, partly reflecting the stepped-up demand ahead of the rise in the consumption tax rate. Later, they declined in reaction.