BOJ Freezes Key Interest Rate at 1% Amid Market Expectations

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) has decided to keep its key interest rate at 1% annual level, freezing it in place after raising it by 0.25 percentage points last month.

The decision was made with the approval of a large number of policy committee members at a two-day financial policy decision meeting held from the previous day, according to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on the 31st.

This move comes after the BOJ raised its key interest rate by 0.25 percentage points from 'about 0.75%' to 'about 1%' last month to reflect instability in the Middle East and inflationary pressure.

The market had been expecting the BOJ to freeze interest rates at this meeting, with Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda set to hold a press conference later in the day to explain the background of the rate freeze and future monetary policy directions.