Agreement to Provide Easier Year-End Credit

The Board of Directors Meeting held on November 18 agreed as private financial institutions to earnestly respond to credit needs of sound customers and make lending smooth and available during the year-end period.The government has launched various policies to make lending to small and medium-sized enterprises smooth and to vitalize regional economies. The Bank of Japan also clearly pushed a flexible monetary policy by raising the targeted ceiling for current account balances banks hold with the central bank.Although banks have been working to ensure smoother lending by introducing various lending schemes, JBA reaffirmed the intent of banks to earnestly meet credit needs of sound companies. This was reaffirmed since December is a period when the credit crunch is particularly keenly felt due to a heightened need for credit among corporations.