STABILITY IS EVERYWHERE
SO WHAT ?
Bank of Japan keeps interest rates steady, sets July to discuss gradual reduction in bond purchases
AFP/Bank of Japan, Interest Rate, Bond Purchases
The Bank of Japan kept its interest rate unchanged on Friday, June 14, but said it would reduce bond purchases in the future to allow long-term interest rates to move more.
At its two-day monetary policy meeting, the central bank said it would continue to buy government bonds at the current pace but decided to present a specific plan to reduce purchases over the next year or two at a subsequent policy meeting in July.
As widely expected, the Bank of Japan unanimously kept its near-term interest rate target at a range of 0% to 0.1%.
The Bank of Japan said it would gather opinions from market participants before its next monetary policy meeting and decide on a detailed plan on reducing the amount of purchases for the next year or two.
After the bank's decision, the Japanese yen fell against the dollar to its lowest level in a month and a half, while Japan's Nikkei index rose more than 0.5%.
