Adviser to Japanese PM Abe, Koichi Hamada is out on the wires saying that the BOJ could halve its 2% inflation target as a result of the sharp fall in the oil price drags down the country's consumer prices
In an interview with Reuters which marks a shift in his view given that he was a prime architect of Abenomics/massive easing policies, he says the BOJ could cut the target to 1% and extend the time frame for achieving the target to three years from the current two
It was difficult to predict crude oil prices would decline by 50% and it is natural for the BOJ to reconsider its inflation target
I don't think the BOJ needs to feel responsible for losing credibility by changing its inflation target
Such a revised view from the BOJ would reduce the need for further easing, a scenario rearing its head frequently lately but flies in the face of earlier mantra-like comments from BOJ gov Kuroda
USDJPY 119.09 again though after a wobble to 118.90
