The Bank of Japan is likely to hold off from raising interest rates next week but investors expect the central bank to outline its response to rising inflationary pressures caused by the yen’s decline.
UBS, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Barclays all predict that the BoJ will hold steady following a historic shift last month when it ended its negative interest rate policy and removed its cap on the 10-year Japanese government bond yield.
Governor Kazuo Ueda has signalled that future rate hikes will be gradual, saying more evidence is needed to ensure that rises in prices and wages are sustainable. Most analysts predict the next rate increase will be in either July or October.