BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda warned that “recent rise of protectionist moves and tightening of financial conditions in some economies remind policymakers of the importance of being vigilant at all times:. And he urged to “pay more attention to protectionist moves, as global economies have become increasingly interdependent through global value chains.”
Domestically, Kuroda said “when 2 percent inflation target is met or is close to be met, of course we can change the target, the monetary operating target of interest rate.” But he also reiterated that “at this moment, inflation is only 1 percent, so we will continue the current yield curve control at the current level of interest.”
Kuroda also talked down the impact of the planned sales tax hike in 2019 and said “at this stage, there would not be any major negative impact on the economy”. He expected to impact of growth would be “much, much smaller” than from an increase in 2014.
