MNI BRIEF:BOJ's Kuroda Says Time Needed To Assess Dec Decision

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday that more time was needed to assess the impact of the December’s decision to widen the range around its 10-year yield target.

Kuroda told lawmakers that distortions in financial markets hadn't t been corrected but he expects the functioning of financial markets to improve.

He added that December’s decision wasn't a move towards a normalisation of monetary policy, but the decision was aimed at restoring the function in financial markets and ensuring the sustainability of monetary policy.

Kuroda also said that real wages were in negative territory on the back of high consumer prices caused by the pass-through of cost increases following the rise of import prices.

“Looking ahead, nominal wages are expected to rise and the year-on-year rise of CPI is expected to shrink. As a result, negative real wages will likely shrink,” Kuroda said, adding the BOJ must maintain easy policy.