(Update) BOJ to Carefully Consider Rate Hike Timing: Ueda

   Tokyo, July 31 (Jiji Press)--The Bank of Japan will carefully assess the timing of its next policy interest rate hike, as uncertainty over economic and price trends in Japan and overseas remains high, BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda said Thursday.
   Speaking at a press conference after the BOJ's two-day policy meeting through Thursday, Ueda said that the impact of the July tariff agreement between Japan and the United States will begin to gradually emerge.
   In its latest quarterly Outlook for Economic Activity and Prices report, released after the meeting, the BOJ raised its projection for growth in the core consumer price index for fiscal 2025 to 2.7 pct from 2.2 pct in the previous report.
   Ueda said that the Japanese central bank has raised the inflation outlook to reflect increases in the prices of foods including rice, which he said may help prolong inflation.
   The BOJ chief welcomed the Japan-U.S. tariff deal as "a big step forward," noting that the decline in uncertainty regarding U.S. tariffs following the agreement has slightly improved the certainty that the bank's inflation outlook will be met.

(2025/07/31-20:54)