The Bank of Japan kept its monetary stimulus unchanged Thursday, but a dovish new board member opposed the decision in his first meeting — an unexpected dissension on a board chosen entirely by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Still, BOJ Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda and his Policy Board left its target interest rates and asset-purchasing program unchanged, a decision expected by all 45 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The vote was 8-1, with Goushi Kataoka objecting.
Kataoka argued that there was little chance of reaching the BOJ's inflation target by the projected time frame of around fiscal 2019, according to the central bank's policy statement. He said the effects of the current yield curve program weren't strong enough, though inflation was likely to continue rising for the time being due to oil prices and foreign-exchange rates.