|
|
Yoshimi Watanabe, Minister of State for Financial Services, does not expect that the subprime crises will directly produce a serious impact on the Japanese financial system, although major Japanese banks reported sharp declines in their profits in the third and fourth quarters of the current fiscal year ending in March 2008.
However, “it will take some time before the global financial markets overcome the current turmoil and return to normal”, Watanabe said in a policy statement before the Committee on Financial Affairs of the House of Councillors. “We will continue to further promote the establishment of a framework that encourages financial institutions to make voluntary and sustained efforts in activities such as relationship-based banking”, he continued
Watanabe underlined his commitment to enforce the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act as proposed last year. “Moreover, in order to resolve the problem of multiple debts, we will continue to implement the Program to Remedy the Multiple Debt Problem in an effective manner through cooperation with other relevant ministries and agencies”, he said.