The Bank of Japan may need more time to achieve its 2 percent inflation target and the country can¡¯t ignore harm caused by an abrupt weakening of the yen, said Toshiro Muto, a two-time contender to lead the central bank.
¡°The hurdle is pretty high to meet the price goal within their targeted time period of about two years,¡± said Muto, 71, a former deputy governor who is now chairman of the Daiwa Institute of Research. ¡°It¡¯s a realistic approach to push back the timing.¡±
Even as the yen¡¯s decline to a six-year low against the dollar swells Japan¡¯s import bill, price gains have slowed to 1.1 percent. Companies surveyed by the BOJ are forecasting inflation lower than its goal for the next five years.
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