BOJ Board Divided on Inflation Outlook Amid Planned Price Hikes

The Bank of Japan's (BOJ) board members have differing views on inflation. Some BOJ members expect consumer inflation to get a significant boost in the latter half of the current fiscal year, according to minutes of the June meeting.

Firms are planning price hikes for a wide range of goods, contributing to this expected increase in inflation. Two of the eight board members called for faster interest rate hikes to push the BOJ's policy rate closer to levels deemed neutral to the economy.

BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda was absent from the meeting due to his hospitalization. The BOJ raised interest rates to a 31-year high of 1% at the June meeting in response to rising fuel costs and mounting inflationary pressures from a weak yen and tight job market.