IMF: BoJ likely to raise interest rates again this year

Nada Choueiri, Deputy Director of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Asia-Pacific Department and its mission chief for Japan, said on Friday that the “Bank of Japan (BoJ) is likely to raise interest rates again this year.”

Additional quotes

See them reaching levels deemed neutral to the economy by end-2027.

See Japan's neutral interest rate in the band of 1-2%.

Japan's economy likely to expand 1.1% this year as continued recovery in wage growth underpins domestic demand.

Further BoJ rate hikes should be gradual, flexible to ensure pick-up in domestic demand.

Risks to Japan's economic growth are skewed to the downside as heightened uncertainty geopolitical fragmentation weigh on global growth.

Market reaction

USD/JPY is holding mild gains near 151.50 following these comments, up 0.11% on the day.