Tokyo: Japan's central bank governor, Kazuo Ueda, affirmed on Friday that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will persist with interest rate hikes if economic and price conditions align with projections. This announcement was made during a news conference after the conclusion of the BOJ's two-day policy meeting.

According to Namibia Press Agency, Ueda acknowledged potential downward pressures on the Japanese economy due to increased U.S. tariffs but expressed confidence that the economy is resilient enough to endure such impacts. He emphasized the necessity of additional data to guide future policy decisions.

During the board meeting, the BOJ resolved to maintain its strategy of guiding the uncollateralized overnight call rate to approximately 0.5 percent, marking the fifth consecutive meeting with no change to the bank's benchmark interest rate. Furthermore, the central bank declared its intention to sell its holdings of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and Japanese real estate investment trusts (J-REITs), acquired over a decade of unconventional easing, as part of its strategy to normalize monetary policy.