BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said in the semi-annual parliament testimony that “there is plenty of scope to deepen negative rates from the current -0.1%.” However, he emphasized “I’ve never said there are no limits to how much we can deepen negative rates, or that we have unlimited means to ease policy.”
Kuroda also reiterated that “Japan’s economy is expected to continue expanding and inflation will gradually head towards our 2% target”. And, “we need to remain vigilant to downside risks, particularly those regarding the global economy.” He also noted that “the effect of China’s policy measures is taking somewhat long to appear. But China’s economy will likely sustain growth of around 6% for the time being.”
