Finally, the U.S. central bank, because of its extensive and well-established relationships with foreign central banks is ideally positioned to engage in coordinated action in managing international financial crises and in supervising institutions that have a substantial international presence. The on-going crisis in Asian financial markets is our most recent example of the need for such coordination of supervision.
Similarly, in order to address concerns about funding shortages over Christmas and the yearend, on the occasion of the two-week main refinancing operation conducted on 18 December 2007, it was decided to shift from a variable-rate tender to a quasi-fixed rate with preannounced full allotment.