Minutes from the Bank of Japan's October meeting released on Tuesday showed that some policymakers pushed for a quicker pace of interest rate increases, given that underlying inflation has reached the central bank's 2% target.
One board member said the effects of previous rate hikes have not yet fully materialized and financial conditions remain accommodative, adding that Japan has entered a new phase in which the BOJ needs to speed up the process of adjusting its policy rate toward a neutral level.
The minutes also showed that two other members of the BOJ's nine-member policy board argued for raising the policy rate to a level considered "neutral" for the economy as soon as possible.
At its meeting held on October 29 and 30, the BOJ kept its key interest rate unchanged at 1.25%, but declared that its 14-year "battle" to achieve its price target had been won, noting upside risks to prices — a stance that further reinforced its hawkish position.
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