The Governor of the Bank of Japan reiterates the policy stance, leaving room for interest rate hike options

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda reiterated the possibility of interest rate hikes in a speech to the Diet, stating that the central bank will retain its options, although no specific timeline for rate increases was provided. He mentioned that inflation has not yet reached the 2% target and expects future basic price trends to approach that target. Ueda's remarks led to a weakening of the yen, and market expectations for interest rate hikes continued to rise. Despite Japan's inflation growing the fastest among the G7 countries, the policy interest rate remains the lowest. Analysts show significant divergence in their expectations for future rate hikes