While BOJ Governor Ueda signaled further rate hikes, the market remained unsatisfied with his stance and the yen’s decline accelerated again. Shortly after the BOJ raised its policy rate from 1.0% to 1.25%, the yen fell to the upper ¥157 range at one point.
At its monetary policy meeting, the BOJ raised its policy rate from 1% to 1.25%. At a press conference, Governor Kazuo Ueda (植田 和男) said, “The policy phase has changed,” while signaling that the BOJ would continue raising rates. Although the market took this as a hawkish message, some reports said the yen showed little immediate reaction.
In the foreign exchange market, the yen fell to the upper ¥157 range against the dollar at one point in the evening Japan time. Expectations that the Federal Reserve would not rule out further rate hikes, along with concerns about a widening interest-rate differential, were seen as adding to downward pressure on the yen.
Comments from several experts were cited, including the CIO of リード・キャピタル, Chief Strategist Hiroshi Namioka (浪岡 宏), and Chris Shikuruna. Some said the BOJ’s press conference alone had failed to calm market jitters.
A list of Bloomberg interview contributors was also introduced as related information, while calls to closely monitor developments continued.