"I think there is no need to revise the law if the BOJ takes measures that we have been seeking"
- Katsunobu Kato, special assistant to Abe
Japanese next Prime Minister Shinzo Abe added more pressure on the Bank of Japan, saying he will consider changing the law governing the central bank, if they do not adopt a 2% inflation target. Moreover, Abe has put the central bank's independence on the line, adding to signs that he will pick someone who agrees with his views after BOJ Governor's Masaaki Shirakawa term expires in April next year. It is also widely expected, that after Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) won this month's lower house election, they will seek cooperation from Your Party and Japan Restoration Party, which are having similar opinions on monetary easing.
"At this month's policy meeting, the BOJ said it would examine (setting an inflation target) at its next meeting" in January, Abe said on television on Sunday. "If it doesn't, we'll revise the BOJ Law and set up a policy accord with the central bank to agree on an inflation target. We may also seek to have the BOJ held accountable for job growth."
"I think there is no need to revise the law if the BOJ takes measures that we have been seeking," Katsunobu Kato, special assistant to Abe, told Reuters in an interview.
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