The Bank of Japan decided at its monetary policy meeting on June 16 to raise its policy rate to around 1.0 percent from around 0.75 percent, a move that was widely expected.The central bank is continuing to adjust its massive monetary easing measures after ending negative rates in March 2024 amid growing inflation concerns fueled by higher crude oil prices and a weaker yen.Because those factors had already been flagged at the previous meeting in April, it is hard to shake the feeling that the rate hike came late.While the policy rate has reached its highest level since 1995, markets had lar…READ FULL ARTICLE
