The Bank of Japan may raise interest rates in April

PANews, February 17—According to Golden Ten Data, former Bank of Japan Policy Board member Seiji Adachi stated that the Bank of Japan is likely to use the large amount of new data available in April as an opportunity to raise interest rates, disregarding market speculation about a possible rate hike in March. In an interview on Monday, Seiji Adachi said: "A rate hike in March would be risky because it would be based on expectations rather than confirmed signals. In April, a large amount of data will be available to confirm improvements in underlying inflation." Seiji Adachi's view is in line with growing market expectations that the committee led by Governor Kazuo Ueda may take action in the spring—earlier than most economists predicted after the last rate hike in December.