Bank of Japan board member Yutaka Harada, a known dove, said in a speech that, the “current low interest rates are partly attributable to the deflationary monetary policies pursued in the past.” “The only way out is to maintain the current accommodative monetary policy in order to achieve sustained expansion of economic activity until we see increases in prices and interest rates.”
He also said, “banks’ low profitability is caused by the structural problem that they are accumulating more deposits than they can lend and the banking sector as a whole therefore will not be able to maintain its current size”. And, “raising interest rates would not solve the problem.”
Instead, “raising interest rates would lead to the following: an appreciation of the yen; falling stock prices; declines in exports, investment, consumption and employment; and the reemergence of the employment ice age.” That would “just throw us back”.
