These advances are opening up possibilities that were difficult even to dream about a little while ago. These changes are leading to much greater use of electronic means of payment and the development of new electronic payment methods. This process has much further to run, although physical banknotes are likely to remain an important part of the payments landscape for many years to come.
For effective communication, the accurate forecasts of economic conditions is required. This will enable us to send consistent policy signals and gain the confidence of economic agents. Economic movements changed greatly last year, however, owing mainly to structural changes in the Korean economy and to external and internal shocks, and so the results of our communication with the market were not so satisfactory.