Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda kept his policy options open by reiterating the bank’s long-held stance on interest rates, avoiding sending any clear signals about the prospects for a rate hike when the board meets later this month.
"If the baseline scenario for economic activity and prices outlined so far is realized, the bank, in accordance with improvement in economic activity and prices, will continue to raise the policy interest rate,” Ueda said Friday in a speech to local business leaders in Osaka.
Ueda refrained from telegraphing any policy changes after market speculation over an impending rate hike gained momentum in recent weeks. Two board members dissented from the decision to hold settings steady last month, and a member considered dovish cited the heightened need for policy change in a speech earlier this week.
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