By Leika Kihara
TOKYO (Reuters) – Some Bank of Japan board members said domestic inflation might hold above the central bank’s 2% target, given changes in corporate wage and price-setting behaviours, minutes of their June policy meeting showed on Wednesday.
“We cannot rule out the chance we are underestimating the sustainability of inflation in Japan,” one of the nine board members was quoted as saying in the minutes.
While some said they expected inflation to slow back below 2% as cost-push factors dissipate, one member said the risk of inflation staying elevated above the level “remained high.”
The board agreed on the need to keep ultra-loose policy for the time being given uncertainty on the outlook for inflation, and a lack of clear side-effects of its policy, the minutes showed.
At the June 15-16 meeting, the BOJ maintained its ultra-easy monetary policy and dovish guidance pledging to “patiently” sustain stimulus to achieve its price target.
(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Tom Hogue & Shri Navaratnam)
