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

According to Nikkei, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will hold a monetary policy meeting on December 18-19, raising the current policy rate of 0.5%, and is currently in the final coordination stage. The most likely scenario is a 25 basis point increase to 0.75%, reaching the highest interest rate level in 30 years since 1995. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda and other senior officials have hinted at submitting a rate hike proposal. Surveys indicate that more than half of the nine policy board members, including the governor and deputy governors, are expected to support the rate hike. Currently, no policy board member has explicitly stated their opposition to the rate hike, and there is widespread approval within the Japanese government. The BOJ will make its final decision after assessing whether there will be market turmoil such as a stock market crash or a sharp appreciation of the yen. If the rate hike is implemented on Friday, it will be the first increase in the BOJ's policy rate in 11 months since January 2025. (Jinshi)