AFP, Tokyo :
The head of the Bank of Japan said Friday that he would consider pulling the trigger on more stimulus if weak oil prices keep holding back inflation.
BoJ chief Haruhiko Kuroda said Japan’s economy was perking up, and the bank held off expanding its record 80 trillion yen ($640 billion) annual asset-buying scheme following a two-day meeting.
But the country’s near-zero inflation rate is far below the BoJ’s 2.0 percent target, a cornerstone of efforts to boost the world’s number three economy and conquer years of deflation.
“We would consider adjusting policy if oil rates affect price trends and impact on underlying price movements,” Kuroda told reporters.
“But that is not the situation right now. We will continue to watch oil price trends and see how they influence underlying price movements.”
A glut of crude oil supply is seen as the main driver for a sharp decline in oil prices that has seen crude fall about 50 percent from mid-2014 levels.
Last month, Japan’s central bank cut its economic growth and inflation forecasts, fuelling speculation that it would soon expand its easing scheme, aimed at boosting prices and kickstarting growth.
The head of the Bank of Japan said Friday that he would consider pulling the trigger on more stimulus if weak oil prices keep holding back inflation.
BoJ chief Haruhiko Kuroda said Japan’s economy was perking up, and the bank held off expanding its record 80 trillion yen ($640 billion) annual asset-buying scheme following a two-day meeting.
But the country’s near-zero inflation rate is far below the BoJ’s 2.0 percent target, a cornerstone of efforts to boost the world’s number three economy and conquer years of deflation.
“We would consider adjusting policy if oil rates affect price trends and impact on underlying price movements,” Kuroda told reporters.
“But that is not the situation right now. We will continue to watch oil price trends and see how they influence underlying price movements.”
A glut of crude oil supply is seen as the main driver for a sharp decline in oil prices that has seen crude fall about 50 percent from mid-2014 levels.
Last month, Japan’s central bank cut its economic growth and inflation forecasts, fuelling speculation that it would soon expand its easing scheme, aimed at boosting prices and kickstarting growth.
