Further comments by BOJ board member Yutaka Harada
- CPI may reach 2% if jobless rate falls below 2%
- What's important is continued price rise momentum
- Momentum hasn't been lost, output gap is tightening
- Fully possible to weaken degree of monetary easing before CPI exceeds 2%
Well, Japan's unemployment rate has steadily fallen - now to 2.2%, the lowest in 25 years - but let's be honest. That hasn't translated to any increase in price pressures whatsoever, so to hope for CPI reaching 2% even if the jobless rate falls further is nothing but a pipe dream.
His earlier comments today can be found here.