(Reference) Unconventional Monetary Policy Measures from the Late 1990s

Zero Interest Rate Policy (February 1999-August 2000)

• Target of short-term interest rates: "as low as possible" (virtually 0%)
• Introduced the idea of the policy duration effect (forward guidance)

Quantitative Easing Policy (March 2001-March 2006)

• Changed the operating target to the outstanding balance of the current accounts at the Bank

Comprehensive Monetary Easing Policy (October 2010-April 2013)

• Target of short-term interest rates: 0 to 0.1% (virtually 0%)
• Increased purchases of long-term Japanese government bonds (JGBs), and started purchases of risk assets (CP, corporate bonds, ETFs, J-REITs)

Quantitative and Qualitative Monetary Easing (QQE) (April 2013-March 2024)

• Changed the operating target to the monetary base
• Substantially increased the amounts outstanding of long-term JGBs, ETFs, etc.
• Strong and clear commitment to achieve the "price stability target of 2%"

• Introduction of QQE with a negative interest rate (January 2016)

• Applied a negative interest rate of minus 0.1% to a part of current account balances held by financial institutions at the Bank

• Introduction of QQE with yield curve control (September 2016)

• Set the target level of the long-term interest rate (around 0%)
• Adopted the inflation-overshooting commitment