Tokyo: The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady and slightly revised up its assessment of the economy on Friday, signalling that it sees no need to expand stimulus again on the near-term horizon.
As widely expected, the BOJ left unchanged its pledge to increase base money, or cash and deposits at the central bank, at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen ($660 billion) through purchases of government bonds and risky assets.
"Japan`s economy continues to recover moderately," the central bank said in a statement announcing the decision. That was a slightly more upbeat view than last month, when it said the economy continued to recover moderately as a trend.
BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda will hold a news conference at 3:30 p.m. (0630 GMT) to explain the policy decision.
The BOJ has stood pat since expanding stimulus in October last year to prevent slumping oil prices, and a subsequent slowdown in inflation, from delaying a sustained end to 15 years of deflation.
