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Bank of Japan Raises Interest Rates

25 January 2025
51241
2025-01-25 11:26

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) has made its third interest rate hike in a year, lifting the level to around half a percent.

The move brings the benchmark rate to the highest point since the 2008 global financial crisis, and highlights the BOJ’s confidence in continuing wage and price rises. Policymakers approved the change at a two-day meeting that ended on Friday. The decision to raise the rate by a quarter of a point is the first hike since July.

BOJ Governor told a news conference that corporate earnings are continuing to improve while labor shortages are intensifying, and he’s heard that many companies will raise wages further this spring as a result. He said the bank has determined that it is appropriate to adjust its monetary easing in order to achieve its 2-percent inflation target in a sustainable and stable manner.

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