Federal Reserve Bank
of San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank
of San Francisco

Data and Indicators

  • What Everyone Needs to Know About the Community Reinvestment Act

    What Everyone Needs to Know About the Community Reinvestment Act

    Every year, banks infuse hundreds of millions in capital into our district’s low and moderate income communities, thanks, in part, to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). These loans and investments help support affordable housing, small business, and other local resources. In this short video, get to know the provisions of the CRA and how they affect you.

  • China Sets the Rules for Internet Finance

    China Sets the Rules for Internet Finance

    Internet finance in China is growing rapidly and has the potential to significantly alter the structure of the financial system. New firms, many of which are private, are entering China’s mostly state-controlled financial system and offering innovative products and services. To adapt to these changes, Chinese regulators have issued a series of new guidelines aimed […]

    ,
  • Why We Shouldn’t Invoke Japan’s “Lost Decade” as China’s Future

    Why We Shouldn’t Invoke Japan’s “Lost Decade” as China’s Future

    China’s transition to a new period of slower growth naturally draws comparison to other countries’ historical development. Given its recent experience with rapid credit expansion, build-up in real estate, and stock market volatility, some observers wonder whether China faces a “lost decade” like the one Japan experienced in the 1990s. This comparison is inappropriate, however, and contributes to a misunderstanding of the challenges China does face and a misremembering those Japan encountered a generation earlier.

    ,
  • Ensuring Confidence in Cash, One Note at a Time

    Ensuring Confidence in Cash, One Note at a Time

    The Federal Reserve Board ordered 7.2 billion Federal Reserve notes for 2015, and a significant number of currency notes change hands every day in the United States. The Federal Reserve is on the front lines of identifying potential counterfeit threats and monitoring the quality of the cash you use every day. Find out how in Maintaining Confidence in U.S. Currency, a video by the Federal Reserve’s national Cash Product Office (CPO).

  • China’s New Normal Is in the Making

    China’s New Normal Is in the Making

    “China’s economy has entered a state of new normal – the gear of growth is shifting from high speed to medium-to-high speed,” said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year. Indeed, after two decades of double-digit growth, the Chinese economy is shifting into a lower gear. According to official statistics released earlier this month, the economy expanded at 7 percent in real terms in the second quarter of 2015.

    ,
  • Firing the Fourth Arrow: The Private Sector and the Future of Japan

    Firing the Fourth Arrow: The Private Sector and the Future of Japan

    On June 15, 2015, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco hosted an Asia Financial Forum entitled Firing the Fourth Arrow: The Private Sector and the Future of Japan. The event featured a panel of Japan experts, including Michael Chui, Partner, McKinsey Global Institute, Tasuku Kuwabara, Principal, McKinsey & Company, and moderator Sean Creehan, Japan […]

    ,
  • Asian Banks Go Global

    Asian Banks Go Global

    One of the most striking trends following the global financial crisis has been the slowdown and retrenchment of cross-border lending. Due to financial distress, many large global banks, particularly those from Europe, had to reduce their international exposure and pull back funding to their home markets.

    ,
  • Financial Sector Assessment Program: A “Report Card” for Bank Supervision in Asia

    Financial Sector Assessment Program: A “Report Card” for Bank Supervision in Asia

    One of the functions of the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) is to issue a “report card” for an economy’s compliance with the Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision (BCP). Since the FSAP’s inception in 1999, many economies have undergone the assessment which is conducted jointly by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    ,
  • Balancing Passion with Practicality [SLIDESHARE]

    Balancing Passion with Practicality [SLIDESHARE]

    Launch a start-up or pursue a degree? No need to choose. Entrepreneurship programs provide students with simultaneous opportunities to achieve their business and educational goals.

  • Asia’s Corporate Debt Poses Risks as Dollar Climbs

    Asia’s Corporate Debt Poses Risks as Dollar Climbs

    Companies across emerging markets issued a record $276 billion in U.S. dollar-denominated bonds in 2014 as they took advantage of low U.S. interest rates, and Asian corporates were no exception. Combined with the strengthening dollar, high levels of dollar-denominated debt increase risks to Asian banking asset quality, particularly when borrowers leave foreign exchange risk unhedged. Asia has made substantial progress building financial system resilience and foreign exchange reserves over the past two decades, but external debt still poses risks for many countries including India, Indonesia, and even China.

    ,