Recovery in advanced economies lacks strength  Let me first talk about advanced economies. The U.S. economy continues to recover. Led by increases in exports, corporate profits have been on a recovery trend, and business fixed investment has been rising moderately. In particular, private consumption, the main demand component, is growing quickly at present.
Growth in consumption is currently outpacing increases in disposable income, and household saving rates, which rose after the failure of Lehman Brothers, have begun to decline. These developments can be attributed in part to the rise in stock prices fueled by additional stimulus measures, both from the monetary and fiscal sides.