BOJ Governor’s Cautious Comments Damp Speculation of October Hike

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By Megumi Fujikawa

(The Wall Street Journal) — Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda reiterated his cautious tone on Tuesday and said the central bank can wait to act until economic uncertainties become clearer, dampening speculation over another rate increase in October.

“In making policy decisions, the bank will need to carefully assess factors such as developments in financial and capital markets at home and abroad and the situation in overseas economies underlying these developments. We have enough time to do so,” Ueda said in a speech to business leaders in Osaka.

The BOJ governor said the risk of higher import prices has lessened because of corrections to the yen’s excessive weakness, suggesting that the bank doesn’t see an imminent need to take action to curb inflation.

The yen has regained some ground against the dollar recently amid expectations for a narrowing interest-rate gap between the U.S. and Japan. Higher import prices triggered by a weak yen was one of the reasons behind the BOJ’s rate increase in July.