  JPM has made material contributions to Singapore’s financial markets with developments such as the launch of the Singapore Kilobar Gold Contract with the SGX in October this year. 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches    JPM was one of the lead managers in Singapore’s first RMB corporate bond issuance earlier this year, which helped to broaden the range of RMB product offerings in the market. On this note, let me congratulate JP Morgan on 50 years of growth in and with Singapore. MAS looks forward to deeper partnership with JP Morgan in further developing Singapore’s financial sector. I am confident that your strong presence in Singapore will serve you well as you extend your footprint in Asia. Thank you for being part of the Singapore growth story. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3
Economic outlook and credit conditions Let me turn to the first of those areas, the current outlook for households and businesses, and what that means for your lending portfolios. Here the backdrop is clear. Over the past few years, the UK economy has faced a series of events which our Governor, Andrew Bailey, summarised in recent remarks4, including the Covid pandemic and the interruptions to economic activity that caused; and the rise in energy prices caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Andrew also outlined the challenging economic conditions we now face including through inflation, which at 10.1% 5 remains well above the 2% target and continues to outstrip wage growth, and a growth rate which the latest Monetary Policy Committee report6 estimates is around 1% per annum compared to a typical rate of nearly 2.75% in the decade leading up to the 2008 financial crisis. In response to inflation, the MPC has raised interest rates 11 times to 4.25%. Whilst inflation is expected to fall sharply by the end of this year and growth to pick up, the impact on the finances of the households and businesses that you serve has been significant. We have seen this through indicators showing consumer confidence at its lowest levels since the 1970s7, households increasingly focusing on value and cost savings in their spending habits, decreased demand for mortgage borrowing in the first quarter of this year8, and subdued demand for credit from corporates who remain under pressure from the impact of higher interest rates9.