The collapse of the real estate price bubble in the early 1990s together with population ageing may have resulted in a permanent decline in the collateral value, thereby reducing banks’ incentives to lend.
Dollar deposits outside the United States are equal to 70 per cent of the US money stock. The ratio for the mark is slightly lower at 63 per cent; for the pound sterling and the French franc it is 13 and 16 per cent respectively.