Reuters Survey: Majority of Economists Predict Bank of Japan Will Not Raise Interest Rates in December

ChainCatcher News, a Reuters survey released on Friday showed that most economists believe the Bank of Japan will maintain interest rates at 0.25% in its December policy meeting to assess overseas risks and wage prospects for next year. In the survey conducted from December 4-11, 58% of respondents (33 out of 57 economists) believed that the Bank of Japan would not raise interest rates again in December, compared to 44% in last month's survey.

All respondents in the latest survey predicted that by the end of March next year, the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates by at least 25 basis points to 0.50%, despite almost all central banks around the world leaning towards further rate cuts. Analysts said that The Bank of Japan is watching trends in spring wage negotiations for next year and hopes to strengthen communication with market participants about policy changes through speeches and branch manager meetings before its January meeting next year.