Announcement of the Monetary Policy Meeting Decisions (July 16)

July 16, 1999
Bank of Japan

(For immediate release)

The Bank today held a Monetary Policy Meeting, a regular meeting of the Policy Board on monetary policy.

By majority vote, the Policy Board decided to leave monetary policy unchanged.

The guideline for money market operations in the inter-meeting period ahead is as follows:

The Bank of Japan will provide more ample funds and encourage the uncollateralized overnight call rate to move as low as possible.

To avoid excessive volatility in the short-term financial markets, the Bank of Japan will, by paying due consideration to maintaining market function, initially^(note) aim to guide the above call rate to move around 0.15%, and subsequently induce further decline in view of the market developments.

Note: "Initially" means the time of the Monetary Policy Meeting, February 12, 1999.

(Reference)

Meeting hours :
9:00 a.m. to 4:22 p.m.

Members present :
Masaru Hayami ( Chairman, Governor )^*
Sakuya Fujiwara ( Deputy Governor )
Yutaka Yamaguchi ( Deputy Governor )
Yasuo Gotoh
Susumu Taketomi
Toshio Miki
Nobuyuki Nakahara
Eiko Shinotsuka
Kazuo Ueda

(Others present)

From Ministry of Finance:
Tsunekazu Haraguchi, Deputy Vice Minister for Policy Co-ordination ( from 9:00 a.m.)
From Economic Planning Agency:
Takao Komine, Director-General of the Price Bureau ( from 9:00 a.m.)

Release of Monthly Report of Recent Economic and Financial Developments:
( Consisting of "The Bank's View" and "The Background" )

Japanese version of the entire report and English version of "The Bank's View"
8:50 a.m. on Wednesday, July 21, 1999
English version of "The Background"
Early August 1999

Release of minutes:
2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 14, 1999

• Mr. Hayami was absent from 9:42 a.m. to 10 :54 a.m. to attend the House of Councilors Committee of Financial Affairs. During his absence, Mr. Fujiwara performed the duties of chairman pursuant to Article 16, Paragraph 5 of the Bank of Japan Law of 1997.