BOJ to forgo another rate hike by year-end, say slim majority of economists
reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=cpurl://apps.cp./Apps/econ-polls?RIC=JPGDPQP GDP poll data
reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=cpurl://apps.cp./Apps/econ-polls?RIC=JPCPIQP core CPI poll data
reuters://realtime/verb=Open/url=cpurl://apps.cp./Apps/cb-polls?RIC=JPONCQP BOJ overnight call rate poll data
By Satoshi Sugiyama
TOKYO, Oct 15 (Reuters) -The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will forgo raising interest rates again this year, according to a very slim majority of economists in a Reuters poll, although nearly 90% still expect rates to rise by end-March.
The findings, published Tuesday, underscore the BOJ's challenge in proceeding with policy normalisation when most of its global peers are tilting towards rate cuts and amid uncertainty over the new political leadership's preference for monetary settings.
Just over half of economists, 25 of 49, in the Oct. 3-11 poll said the BOJ would stick to the current 0.25% rate through end-December. That was also the median forecast, down from 0.50%.
Results in the previous poll in September were also close, with 46% expecting no change.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who took office on Oct. 1, moved markets the next day when he said the economy was not ready for further rate hikes. That was an apparent about-face from his previous support for the BOJ in its early stages of unwinding decades of extreme monetary stimulus.
"It's difficult for the Bank of Japan to boldly ignore the prime minister's personal opinion," said Chiyuki Takamatsu, chief economist at Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance.
Still, 87% of economists, or 39 of 45, said the BOJ would raise rates to 0.50% by end-March. Another three who had predicted a rate hike to 0.50% by year-end expected the rate to be 0.75% by the end of the first quarter.
"It's unlikely the BOJ will raise interest rates again after the lower house election and before the budget for the next fiscal year is drawn up in late December," said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Daiwa Securities.
"There is also a growing momentum for wage increases next year, and if the U.S. economy continues to be resilient, we believe the conditions for a rate hike will be in place by the time the BOJ's quarterly outlook report is released in January."
Iwashita said the BOJ could push back its decision to March if it wants to see the feasibility of the new U.S. administration's policy and the situation in the annual springtime wage negotiations.
Among a smaller sample of 18 economists who predicted higher rates by year-end and who also provided a forecast for a specific month when the BOJ will next move, only one did not forecast December.
Of another 19 economists who provided monthly forecasts and anticipated either a rate hike next year or no further increase at all, almost three-quarters, or 14, chose January. That was up from 60% in September's poll.
The BOJ ended negative rates in March and raised short-term borrowing costs to 0.25% in July on the view Japan was making progress towards durably achieving 2% inflation.
Japan's economy expanded an annualised 2.9% in the second quarter as steady wage hikes underpinned consumer spending.
Capital expenditure continues to grow, though soft demand in China and slowing U.S. growth indicate a solid recovery for the export-reliant country could be some way off.
Close to three-quarters of economists surveyed, 21 of 29, said it was too early to make a judgement on Ishiba's economic policy.
(Other stories from the Reuters global economic poll)
Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Polling by Rahul Trivedi and Susobhan Sarkar; Editing by Jonathan Cable, Ross Finley and Sam Holmes
Senaste nytt
Ansvarsfriskrivning: XM Group-enheter tillhandahåller sin tjänst enbart för exekvering och tillgången till vår onlinehandelsplattform, som innebär att en person kan se och/eller använda tillgängligt innehåll på eller via webbplatsen, påverkar eller utökar inte detta, vilket inte heller varit avsikten. Denna tillgång och användning omfattas alltid av i) villkor, ii) riskvarningar och iii) fullständig ansvarsfriskrivning. Detta innehåll tillhandahålls därför uteslutande som allmän information. Var framför allt medveten om att innehållet på vår onlinehandelsplattform varken utgör en uppmaning eller ett erbjudande om att ingå några transaktioner på de finansiella marknaderna. Handel på alla finansiella marknader involverar en betydande risk för ditt kapital.
Allt material som publiceras på denna sida är enbart avsett för utbildnings- eller informationssyften och innehåller inte – och ska inte heller anses innehålla – rådgivning och rekommendationer om finansiella frågor, investeringsskatt eller handel, dokumentation av våra handelskurser eller ett erbjudande om, eller en uppmaning till, en transaktion i finansiella instrument eller oönskade finansiella erbjudanden som är riktade till dig.
Tredjepartsinnehåll, liksom innehåll framtaget av XM såsom synpunkter, nyheter, forskningsrön, analyser, kurser, andra uppgifter eller länkar till tredjepartssajter som återfinns på denna webbplats, tillhandahålls i befintligt skick, som allmän marknadskommentar, och utgör ingen investeringsrådgivning. I den mån som något innehåll tolkas som investeringsforskning måste det noteras och accepteras att innehållet varken har varit avsett som oberoende investeringsforskning eller har utarbetats i enlighet med de rättsliga kraven för att främja ett sådant syfte, och därför är att betrakta som marknadskommunikation enligt tillämpliga lagar och föreskrifter. Se till så att du har läst och förstått vårt meddelande om icke-oberoende investeringsforskning och riskvarning om ovannämnda information, som finns här.
