Bank of Japan Adds Two Members

The two new members of the Bank of Japan’s policy board said on Tuesday that the central bank’s forecasts for a gradual end to deflation are overly optimistic and policymakers should be prepared to take new and bolder steps to boost prices.

Purchasing foreign bonds could be one future policy option as long as the central bank made it clear that it is providing liquidity and not trying to manipulate currencies, said Takehiro Sato, one of the new board members.

The government on Tuesday formally appointed Sato and Kiuchi to the board, filling seats left vacant since April. Sato was formerly chief economist at Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, and Kiuchi worked as a chief economist at Nomura Securities.

As prominent economists, both Sato and Kiuchi have frequently urged the BOJ to take more aggressive steps to beat deflation, which has stifled Japan’s economy for much of the past two decades.

via Chicago Tribune

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