Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said the country is making progress toward achieving the bank's 2% inflation target but not enough to end ultraloose policy just yet, warning of uncertainty on whether companies will keep raising wages enough next year.
The key factors impacting whether the nation can sustainably achieve 2% inflation is whether wages will keep rising next year and whether companies will start hiking prices on expectations that labor costs will continue to increase, he said.
"We're seeing more positive signs than before in corporate wage and price-setting behavior. But there's still uncertainty on whether the positive cycle (of inflation and wages) will strengthen, as we predict," Ueda said in a speech to business leaders in Nagoya on Monday.