Growing spending appetite likely to push up prices: Kuroda

November 6, 2017

Nagoya- Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda suggested Monday that the environment looks set for prices in the country to rise on the back of consumers' growing willingness to make purchases.

"It looks as though firms that had been hesitant to raise prices for many years are encouraged by the increase in consumers' appetite for spending," Kuroda said in a speech at a meeting with business leaders in Nagoya, central Japan.

At the same time, the head of the Japanese central bank said that there is still "a long way to go to" before the BOJ's price stability target of 2 pct is achieved and that the bank will continue to pursue massive monetary easing.

In the background of upward pressure on prices are rising wage costs stemming from labor shortages and improving employment and income situations, Kuroda said.

In late October, the BOJ cut its year-on-year growth forecast for Japan's core consumer price index, excluding fresh food, in fiscal 2017 to 0.8 percent from 1.1 percent.

Noting that efficiency-boosting corporate investment is one factor leading to weaker price movements, Kuroda said that the BOJ "does not expect that this situation will last for a long time." Jiji Press