BOJ Governor Ueda's comments at news conference
· CNA · JoinRead a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
Dec 19 : The Bank of Japan has raised its interest rates on Friday to levels unseen in three decades and signalled readiness for further hikes, taking another landmark step in ending decades of huge monetary support and near-zero borrowing costs.
In a widely expected move, the BOJ raised short-term interest rates to 0.75 per cent from 0.5 per cent in the first increase since January. The decision was made by a unanimous vote.
Following are excerpts from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda's comments at his post-meeting news conference, which was conducted in Japanese, as translated by Reuters:
POLICY ADJUSTMENTS WILL DEPEND ON DATA AT EACH MEETING
Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review
Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.
This service is not intended for persons residing in the E.U. By clicking subscribe, I agree to receive news updates and promotional material from Mediacorp and Mediacorp’s partners.
Loading
"As for the pace of how we adjust our monetary support, that will depend on economic, price, financial developments at the time. We will update at each meeting our views on the economic, price outlook as well as risks and the likelihood of achieving our forecasts, and make an appropriate decision."
NEUTRAL RATE UNCERTAIN; POLICY TO DEPEND ON ECONOMIC SCENE
"Our estimate on Japan's neutral rate sits on a pretty wide range. It's hard to set a pin-point estimate ... We'd like to look at how the economy and prices react to each change in short-term rate."
MONETARY SUPPORT WILL CONSIDER REAL RATES AND LENDING
"In judging the degree of monetary support, we need to look not just at the distance from the neutral rate but real interest rates, lending and developments in the economy." RATES BELOW NEUTRAL; BOJ TO MONITOR ECONOMY FOR POLICY MOVES
"Even after raising rates to 0.75 per cent, there's some distance to the bottom of our estimated range of neutral. In judging where the neutral rate sits, we need to look at how the economy and prices respond to each policy adjustment."
BOJ OFFICIALS FLAG SOFTER YEN COULD PUSH PRICES HIGHER
"At today's meeting, a few board members said recent yen declines could exert upward price pressure and impact underlying inflation."
NEW NEUTRAL RATE ESTIMATES MAY NOT NARROW RANGE
"We will seek to produce new estimates on Japan's neutral rate, if needed, though I don't think that will help us narrow the range that much." STRONG WAGE MOMENTUM COULD OPEN DOOR FOR RATE HIKE
"The initial momentum for next year's wage talks seem to be okay. If the wage momentum does not peter and broaden as we expect, we could see the opportunity open up for another rate hike."
DOES THE BOJ'S WAGE OUTLOOK HINT AT MORE RATE HIKES?
"All I can say is that our future policy decision depends on the information that will become available at the time." ON THE GAP BETWEEN BOJ POLICY RATE AND NEUTRAL RATE
"Even when judging from our insufficient estimate on neutral rate, our policy rate is still somewhat below the bottom of the range. When looking at the impact of our past rate hikes, I don't think there's evidence that they have diminished the degree of monetary support enormously." ON WAGE OUTLOOK FOR SMALLER FIRMS
"When we did our survey, we found that smaller firms' profits are overall firm. The problem is that there is divergence, particularly among the smallest firms. We want to look developments carefully."
ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF ABENOMICS
"We have been guiding monetary policy based on our joint statement with the government. We're not at the final stage of completion. Of course there may have been side-effects and there could be more. But our goal is to achieve a stable landing."
JAPAN'S REAL RATES DEEPLY NEGATIVE ACROSS 2–3 YEAR YIELDS
"Even when using various means of inflation expectations, what's clear is that Japan's real interest rate is deeply negative for the overnight to 2, 3-year yields."
RATE HIKES WILL DEPEND ON DATA, BOJ SEEKS INFLATION TARGET
"The pace of future rate hikes will depend on data and economic developments at the time. We will make an appropriate decision so that we're not behind the curve on inflation, and that we can make a smooth landing toward our inflation target."
Newsletter
Week in Review
Subscribe to our Chief Editor’s Week in Review
Our chief editor shares analysis and picks of the week's biggest news every Saturday.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app