As I noted earlier, I anticipate that inflation will rise only slowly. As you know, the inflation rate is the growth rate of the price level – that is, how much people pay for a typical bundle of goods and services. Hence, the downside misses with respect to inflation cumulate into a significantly lower price level.
As for the outlook, public investment is likely to start decreasing in the near future, but net exports are expected to continue increasing gradually, reflecting the expansion in overseas economies. In the corporate sector, firms still strongly feel that they have excess equipment and that they should reduce their debts to restore financial soundness.