Ten-year euro area government bond yields are currently at levels significantly below 4%. Furthermore, financial deepening is evident in the rapid growth of new market segments, such as the corporate bond market, reinforcing the access of investors to funds and thereby contributing greatly to economic growth.
The commercial property sector, for example, is part way through a difficult period of adjustment to valuation and leverage, even as parts of the mining sector are back to producing at full tilt to supply Chinese demand for resources.