BOJ board reshuffle brings in less dovish members

The Bank of Japan’s two new policymakers said on Monday the central bank needs an exit strategy from its massive stimulus, a sign the board’s balance could tilt in favour of a withdrawal of Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s radical monetary easing.

Hajime Takata, a former private economist, said the BOJ must “always think about” an exit strategy even though now may not be the timing for an actual end to ultra-low interest rates.

The other newcomer, Naoki Tamura, who joined from a commercial bank, said an exit from easy policy would become a focus of discussion once wages begin to rise in tandem with inflation.

“Only when the BOJ can normalise monetary policy and exit can it describe its massive monetary easing programme as a success,” Tamura said in an inaugural news conference. Takata and Tamura joined the BOJ’s nine-member board on Sunday, replacing former economist Goushi Kataoka, a vocal advocate of aggressive monetary easing.