One of the Bank of Japan's newly appointed deputy governors said consumer prices are not rising quickly enough and the central bank should strengthen its policy stance if possible, underscoring a still-tepid inflation outlook in the nation despite years of stimulus.
Masazumi Wakatabe, speaking in the Diet on Friday, praised the accomplishments of the BOJ's policy framework so far but said there may be room for improvement.
Wakatabe, who was commenting on data released earlier in the day, stopped short of calling for additional easing. However, he has repeatedly said the BOJ should not hesitate to ease policy if there is a delay in meeting its 2 percent inflation target.