Kazuo Ueda, the government's nominee to be the next Bank of Japan (BOJ) governor, speaks during a hearing session in the lower house of the Diet in Tokyo on Friday. The Bank of Japan's long-standing monetary easing policies are "appropriate", the nominee for its next governor, Kazuo Ueda, told the Diet on Friday, suggesting no sudden changes to the bank's stance when he takes the helm in April. Ueda, 71, an economics professor, told lawmakers that he saw the "continuation of monetary easing as appropriate", warning of high levels of uncertainty in financial markets and the global economy. "It is necessary to keep monetary easing to support the economy and create an environment where companies can raise wages," he said in his first public address since being nominated by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. But because the price hikes are not driven by demand or steady wage increases the bank views them as temporary, and as such no reason to abandon its easing policies.

Source: The Guardian February 24, 2023 19:44 UTC