Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has renewed his pressure on the Bank of Japan to play a more assertive role in the economy's recovery, raising the adoption of his proposed 2 percent inflation target by the central bank yet again.
"As the BOJ's monetary policy is vitally important to an economic rebound, I hope it will implement a 2 percent inflation goal in a responsible manner," Abe said Friday in the city of Ise, Mie Prefecture, where he held his first news conference of the year.
BOJ Gov. Masaaki Shirakawa has not ruled out the possibility of introducing a 2 percent inflation target at its next Policy Board meeting from Jan. 21-22, following repeated calls by Abe for more aggressive monetary easing.