BoJ gives itself another year to meet its ambitious 2% inflation forecast
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) kept monetary policy steady on Thursday but once again pushed back the timing for achieving its ambitious inflation target, reinforcing views that it will lag well behind other major central banks in scaling back its huge stimulus programme. With robust exports and private consumption pointing to a steady though modest recovery, the Japanese central bank slightly raised its growth forecasts and offered a more upbeat view of the world’s third-largest economy than in June. But stubbornly weak price growth forced the BoJ to cut its inflation forecasts, underscoring the challenges the central bank faces as it tries to reflate the economy and coax consumers to spend more. "Recent price developments have been relatively weak, as companies remained cautious in raising wages and prices," the BoJ said in a quarterly report on its long-term growth and inflation projections. "Risks to the economy and price outlook are skewed to the downside," it said. The BoJ pushed bac...
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