‘BOJ shadow governor’ Bessent pushed for rate hike
Bank of Japan
US treasury secretary and market pressure nudged PM Takaichi to accept rate increase
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, right, urged Japanese officials to raise the policy rate to avoid economic and financial disruptions. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Nikkei)
KOSUKE TAKEUCHI and RYUTO IMAO
TOKYO — The Bank of Japan raised its policy interest rate to 1% — the highest in 31 years — on Tuesday but the monetary tightening came despite Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s initially cool attitude toward rate hikes. Instead, the move appears to have come in part because of a member of a different government.
