Japanese media: The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates to 0.75%, the highest in 30 years

According to the Nikkei, the Bank of Japan will hold a monetary policy meeting on December 18-19 to raise the current policy rate of 0.5%, and it is now in the final stage of coordination. The most likely plan is to raise the rate by 25 basis points to 0.75%, reaching the highest level in 30 years after 1995. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda and other executives have signaled their intention to submit a rate hike proposal, and surveys show that more than half of the nine policy committees, including the chairman and deputy governors of the central bank, are expected to support a rate hike.
None of the policy committee members has explicitly expressed their opposition to a rate hike, and there is widespread approval within the Japanese government for a rate hike. The Bank of Japan will make a final decision after considering whether there will be market disruptions such as a stock market slump and a sharp appreciation of the yen. If the rate hike comes to fruition on Friday, it will be the first time the Bank of Japan has raised policy rates in 11 months after January 2025.