BOJ May Raise Rates in March if Yen Drops Further: Economist

Tokyo, Feb. 6 (Jiji Press)--The Bank of Japan may raise interest rates in March at the earliest if the yen weakens further, although a rate hike in April appears to be the main scenario, Ryutaro Kono, chief economist at BNP Paribas Securities (Japan) Ltd., said Friday.

"A March rate hike could come into view if the yen depreciates more than expected," Kono said in a speech at a meeting hosted by the Research Institute of Japan, a Jiji Press affiliate.

He explained that Japan's low real interest rates are driving the yen's weakness, which is increasingly reflected in domestic prices.

The central bank "has already started to fall behind the curve" in raising interest rates, Kono said.

He expressed opposition to a consumption tax cut proposed by ruling and opposition parties in their policy promises for Sunday's election for the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, the country's parliament.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]