BOJ Kuroda says Japan inflation to stay around 2% for a year

TOKYO – Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Friday the country’s core consumer inflation will likely remain around the central bank’s 2% target for 12 months unless energy prices drop sharply.

But he told parliament that prices likely would not rise “sustainably and stably” unless accompanied by wage hikes, suggesting the recent increase in inflation alone would not lead to an immediate withdrawal of monetary stimulus.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara and Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Himani Sarkar)