Indeed, on a historical cost basis, the ratio of debt to net worth for the nonfinancial corporate business sector did rise, from 71 percent at the end of 1997 to about 81 percent at the end of the third quarter of last year, though it is still well below its level at the beginning of the recession in 1990.
•  Assess, from the point of view of market actors, the overall prospects for greater integration of the domestic and regional securities markets.