BASEL, Switzerland (Kyodo) The biggest topic in the new year among international financial markets is clear. It is how Bank of Japan Gov. Toshihiko Fukui will manage to push forward with monetary policies that will take Japan out of having the lowest interest rates among industrialized countries.
At a central bank governors' meeting Monday in Basel sponsored by the Bank for International Settlements, some 50 governors participated, including U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and People's Bank of China chief Zhou Shaochuan. The BOJ was apparently the focus of attention.
Much of the attention is coming from foreign-exchange markets. The BOJ's postponement of an expected rate increase late last year, combined with monetary tightening by the European Central Bank, sent the euro into orbit against the, yen with the euro soaring to the 158 yen level at one stage for a record high.