- Bank of Japan plans to gradually sell $250 billion in ETFs and real estate investment assets acquired since 2010.
- The central bank will sell about $2.2 billion of ETFs per year, with the sale process expected to take over a century.
- The bank kept its key interest rate steady at 0.5% amid division among policy board members.
- Japan’s core inflation reached 2.7% in August, exceeding the central bank’s 2% target.
- Market reaction saw the Nikkei fall by over 1%, rising government bond yields, and a dip in cryptocurrency prices.
Bank of Japan announced on Friday that it will begin unwinding its $250 billion holdings in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and Japanese Real Estate Investment Trusts (JREITs). The bank collected these assets over the past 14 years to support the country’s economy through ultra-loose monetary policy.
The central bank said it will start by selling ETFs with a book value of $2.2 billion per year, which represents a market value of $4.2 billion annually. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda stated the sales would be slow and could take more than a century to fully dispose of these assets.
The announcement coincided with the central bank’s decision to keep its benchmark interest rate at 0.5%, decided by a 7-2 vote. According to the Financial Times, two members called for an immediate rate hike because inflation remains above target. Japan’s core consumer price index (CPI) rose to 2.7% in August, which is higher than Bank of Japan‘s 2% goal.
After the announcement, the Nikkei index dropped over 1%, and Japan’s 10-year government bond yield rose to 1.64%, its highest in years. Cryptocurrency prices fell in response, with Bitcoin slipping below $118,000 after briefly surpassing that level.
Japan continues to face high levels of government debt, with a debt-to-GDP ratio near 240%. The country’s bond yields have reached multi-decade highs, raising concerns about the future cost of borrowing and long-term fiscal sustainability.
✅ Follow BITNEWSBOT on Telegram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X.com, and Google News for instant updates.
Previous Articles:
- Lighthouse, Lucid PhaaS Linked to 17,500 Phishing Domains Globally
- Ethereum Sets December 3 Date for Major Fusaka Scalability Upgrade
- NYDFS Expands Blockchain Analytics Rules to NY Banks in 2025
- MetaMask Token Confirmed: Joe Lubin Says Launch Is ‘Very Soon’
- Avalanche (AVAX) Surges 51% as Crypto Market Stalls
