Bank of Japan (BoJ)
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) steers Japanese monetary policy. Its Policy Board, whose 9 members include Governor Kazuo Ueda, meets 8 times a year for two days; the decision comes on the second day, at no set time, often around noon in Tokyo, which is early morning in Paris. The governor comments on it at 3:30 p.m. Tokyo time (8:30 a.m. in Paris in summer time, 7:30 a.m. otherwise). On March 19, 2024, the BoJ ended eight years of negative rates and yield curve control. It has since raised its policy rate, reaching 1.25% on September 18, 2026, a level held on October 30. For the yen, the interest rate gap with other countries matters, as does the carry trade, borrowing in yen to invest elsewhere: in early August 2024, shortly after a hike, its unwinding amplified the yen’s surge and the fall of the Tokyo stock market. Upcoming releases: the economic calendar.
See also
The rate at which a central bank lends to commercial banks — the “rent on money.”
The set of levers a central bank uses to steer inflation and employment.
The 12-member committee that sets the US policy rate, 8 times a year.
The size and speed of an asset’s price swings.
The three major time windows that set the rhythm for volume and volatility.