How Companies View Their Ties With Financial Institutions The Sixth NLI Business Climate Survey Reveals Expectations for the Big Bang

the Industrial Research Dept.

Introduction

The Sixth NLI Business Climate Survey was conducted in January and February 1998 by Nippon Life Insurance Co. in cooperation with NLI Research Institute. The survey mainly covered second-tier and small and mid-size companies nationwide (4，808 responses were received)， asking corporate managers their views on recent changes in the financial environment， and on the "Big Bang" reforms slated to begin on April 1.

The survey results reflect the bleak financial conditions companies are presently struggling with: (1) interest in the Big Bang was still limited to a portion of companies， with small and mid-sized companies outside the metropolitan areas not fully aware of its implications; (2) companies that are already aware of the Big Bang (mainly large companies with city banks as their main bank， and small and mid-sized companies in strong industries) predict that the Big Bang will lead to greater diversity in banking transactions and increased transactions with specific financial institutions; (3) while competition among financial institutions is expected to intensify， companies do not expect the competition to yield many benefits， and only 4 percent predict lower financing costs; and (4) nonetheless， almost 80 percent of companies seek lower financing costs from financial institutions.