BoJ Haruhiko Kuroda told Sankei newspaper that the central bank “would need to consider monetary policy steps” if outbreak of China’s coronavirus “significantly affects Japan’s economy”. He said the outbreak is the “biggest uncertainty” for the domestic economy”. And, BoJ would take “additional easing steps without hesitation” if risks heighten.
But for now, even though Japan’s GDP contracted as the worst pace in six years in Q4, Kuroda didn’t expect global and Japan growth in 2020 to be significantly lower than last year. He expected China’s domestic production to bottom out to recover from April. But that would depend on when the outbreak peaks.
