Bank of Japan board member: A cautious and gradual rate hike may be necessary at some future stage.

November 12: Bank of Japan Policy Board member Junko Asada stated that she is not entirely opposed to raising interest rates at present, and that a slow rate hike may be necessary at some future stage, but the pace must be carefully controlled. She pointed out that Japan's inflation rate has reached about 2%, and further pushing up prices is of little significance; the neutral interest rate may be slightly higher than the BOJ's current policy rate. Asada also said that a rate cut proposal is not currently under consideration, and she hopes to comprehensively assess upside and downside economic risks and financial conditions at each monetary policy meeting before making policy decisions.