It should be noted, however, that the levels of the above rates and premium are still high compared with those prevailing before autumn 1997, which can be attributed to the continuing cautious attitudes of market participants toward credit risk.
Meanwhile, with the releases of weak economic indicators, long-term government bond yields have fluctuated in a historically low range and stock prices have been declining since the end of March. BIS Review 32/1998  -2-  With respect to monetary aggregates, the growth in money stock continued to be rather high in February due to the substantial shift of funds away from investment trusts.