An article via Bloomberg: Bank of Japan Majority Won’t Be Swayed by Kuroda Ideology

In brief, but more detail at the article:

  • BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has yet to persuade most board members that they have the power to achieve their inflation target
  • A majority of the nine members disagree with Kuroda’s view that flooding the economy with cash is sufficient to get stable 2% gains in consumer prices, according to people familiar with their thinking
  • Most conclude it cannot be done without government steps to raise Japan’s growth potential, they said, asking not to be named because the discussions are private
  • The ideological gap, masked in public remarks by most board members, underscores why some reflationist lawmakers are still pushing for legislation that would hold the BOJ responsible for delivering on its target
  • Debate may become more public should calls for expanded asset purchases escalate in face of inflation falling short of the goal next year.
  • “There may be some members who don’t get it, so we have to make sure the BOJ law is revised,” Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Kozo Yamamoto, who has advised Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on economic policy, said in an interview in Tokyo last week. “The BOJ has to be held accountable.”

And:

  • “There is no way Kuroda has changed the fundamental thinking on monetary policy and the economy held by each board member,” said Masaaki Kanno, chief Japan economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Tokyo, who used to work at the BOJ. “Over the course of trying to achieve a stable price target, we are likely to see divisions on the board, either when they need to discuss more easing or an exit.”

Even more BOJ easing to come?