Adequate credit availability for small businesses is an important public policy issue because small businesses are essential for employment and economic growth for the economy. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 includes a provision that could potentially support financial institutions in the...

This paper shows, using data from the Family Income and Expenditure Survey, that housing credit has become increasingly available over time in Japan, especially since 2000, and that this has made it easier for Japanese households to purchase housing and enabled them to do so at an earlier age....