The world's richest nations are unlikely to discuss joint interest-rate cuts this week as a step to ease turmoil in global financial markets, a former Bank of Japan official said.
Simultaneous rate reductions by major central banks are "unlikely to be on the agenda" at the Group of Seven meeting in Tokyo, Eiji Hirano, a former BOJ executive director, said in an interview Friday. "The U.S., Europe and Japan are each facing different economic and financial conditions."
The U.S. Federal Reserve's two interest-rate cuts last month spurred speculation among investors that the BOJ and the European Central Bank may follow suit. Finance ministers and central bankers from the U.S., Japan, Germany, the U.K., France, Italy and Canada will meet on Feb. 9 in Tokyo.