For 1st time since 2008, Bank of Japan decided to raise discount rate to 0.25%

By Alimat Aliyeva

For the second time in these six months, the Bank of Japan (Central Bank) has revised its ultra-soft monetary policy and raised the discount rate, which in recent years has been set at a virtually negative level, Azernews reports.

At a meeting of the financial regulator, it was decided to raise the short-term interest rate from 0-0.1% to 0.25%. The Bank of Japan also decided to reduce the volume of purchases of government bonds.

It is noted that the Bank of Japan plans to continue raising the discount rate in the future, since inflation in the country exceeds the target of 2% - in June this year, inflation was 2.6% year-on-year.

In general, the Japanese financial regulator assesses the state of the economy as positive, noting a positive trend towards growth against the background of steady wage growth and an increase in household incomes.