🇯🇵 BOJ’S SATO BACKS FURTHER RATE HIKES, BUT FLAGS WEAK CONSUMPTION

BOJ board member Ayano Sato supports gradually raising interest rates, saying tighter policy can contribute to sustainable economic growth, but declined to specify the timing of the next hike.

Sato, who opposed a rate hike at September’s meeting, said the decision reflected concern that consumer spending lacked momentum.

Her support for eventual tightening could reinforce the BOJ’s broader normalization path despite caution over domestic demand.
(@WalterBloomberg)