Japan, BOJ reaffirm commitment to 2per cent inflation goal in meeting, no discussion on yen
FILE PHOTO: A man looks at a mobile phone in front of the Bank of Japan building in Tokyo, Japan June 16, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
TOKYO :The Japanese government and Bank of Japan on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to meeting the 2per cent inflation target and keeping in close contact, as laid out in a 2013 joint statement.
The meeting was held between BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki and Economy Minister Daishiro Yamagiwa, the three said separately. The meeting lasted less than an hour.
It comes after Fumio Kishida took over as Japan's prime minister last month, a position strengthened by his party's solid victory in general elections on Sunday.
"The most important issue was to reaffirm a joint statement issued by the government and the BOJ in January 2013," Yamagiwa told reporters after the meeting.
"The government and the BOJ must keep close contact with each other. The BOJ aims to achieve the 2per cent price stability target while we proceed with economic growth strategy."
The policymakers exchanged views on the economy, prices and the financial situation, the central bank said.
But when asked about the currency, Suzuki told reports the yen had not been discussed. The Japanese currency has weakened to around 114 yen in recent weeks, having touched an almost four-year trough of 114.695 on Oct. 20.
Tuesday's meeting was the first of its kind since January 2013, when the government and the central bank issued a joint statement laying out the 2per cent inflation target for the BOJ's policy objective.
The joint statement issued in January 2013 also called on the government to press ahead with efforts to put tattered public finances in order.
Nearly nine years later, those objectives have yet to be achieved, as massive money printing has failed to spur inflation while stagnant growth and the COVID-19 pandemic have forced the government to keep its fiscal spigot wide open.
With inflation struggling to accelerate, the central bank's estimates show the 2per cent inflation target will not be met even in fiscal 2023 when Kuroda serves out his term. The government's aim of achieving a primary budget surplus, excluding new bond sales and debt servicing, also remains elusive.
Japanese core consumer inflation rose 0.1per cent in September, its first year-on-year increase in 1-1/2 years, but still well below the central bank's 2per cent target.
(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto, Kaori Kaneko;Additional reporting by Daniel Leussink, Kantaro Komiya;Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Ana Nicolaci da Costa)
