TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan (BoJ) left interest rates unchanged on Friday and maintained monetary policy, indicating it was in no rush to end its stimulus measures.
At the end of its two-day meeting, the Japanese central bank maintained its short-term interest rate target at -0.1% and its commitment to setting long-term yields around zero.
It also retained its rate curve control (PCC) policy, allowing ten-year yields to fluctuate by 0.5% around the zero target.
“The Japanese economy is expected to continue to recover moderately,” the BoJ said in a statement, adding that inflation forecasts showed further signs of an increase.
The institution made no changes to its forecasts, and again committed to “taking additional easing measures without hesitation”.
Markets are now awaiting a speech from BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda, who could give indications as to when a policy change could take place.
Data released Friday showed Japan’s core inflation rose to 3.1% in August, above the central bank’s 2% target for the 17th consecutive month.
(Reporting Leika Kihara; Camille Raynaud)
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