This is reflected by the fact that risk premiums on the interbank market, for example the TED and basis spreads, have fallen to levels close to those that applied before the outbreak of the  4  BIS Review 111/2009  financial crisis in both Sweden and abroad (see Figure 1). The stock market has also recovered strongly. Swedish companies have gradually found it easier to find funding on the international capital markets. But the situation is still strained. The interest rates offered to Swedish companies are high in comparison to the interest rates for government securities, that is the credit spreads are still high. In addition, corporate demand for export guarantees is much higher at present than has been the case previously. This indicates that the funding situation of the companies is still strained. International economic activity show signs of recovery Since the monetary policy meeting in July, signs have emerged of a slowdown in the economic downturn abroad. In some countries, there are now even signs of a recovery. This can be seen, for example, if we look at world trade, which has now begun to stabilise following the collapse at the start of the year (see Figure 2). Both outcomes and indicators of future economic growth have stabilised or shown an upturn in most regions. In Asia, in particular, growth has clearly picked up during the second quarter of this year (see Figure 3). This is because domestic demand in China has increased, which in turn stimulates exports in the Asian countries.
•  The published Allsopp analysis included a challenge from the major central banks to the major market participants to develop a new settlement mechanism. In short, find a solution or we will find one for you! I recount this history to highlight the magnitude of the achievement CLS represents. The establishment and growth of CLS is undoubtedly one of the most significant accomplishments in global financial markets in the post-war period and a major breakthrough in managing settlement risk in an over-the-counter market. BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  •  The largest part of the achievement, of course, is the difficult job of making it happen. CLS was actually the third major concept for FX settlement. It succeeded because the industry collectively got firmly behind CLS and because of the hard work of the many people in the CLS organization, whose commitment and efforts continue to this day. Let me highlight three dimensions of CLS’s success. First, its growth and its scope. When it went live in 2002, CLS began settling FX transactions in just seven currencies with 39 settlement members. Today it settles in 17 currencies with 63 settlement members and 16,000 third party users. Volumes and values of transactions settled via CLS have also expanded significantly. Today CLS is settling average daily values of nearly $ trillion and average daily volumes of 1 million transactions. On its peak settlement value day, March 19, 2008, CLS settled over 10 trillion U.S. dollars equivalent. Second, adaptation to a rapidly changing foreign exchange market.