Bank of Japan starts 2-day policy meeting

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) on Monday began a two-day policy meeting, during which a 2 percent inflation goal and further monetary easing plans may be decided. The BOJ is widely expected to decide to set a 2 percent inflation target and write it in a joint statement with the government, which could be released after the end of the bank's meeting on Tuesday, Japanese media cited sources as saying. The nine-member Policy Board is also expected to discuss the possibility of using open-ended easing steps similar to those of the U.S. Federal Reserve, including buying government bonds and other relatively safe financial assets without setting a deadline, Kyodo News Agency said. Earlier January, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet, which was formed on December 26, made a stimulus package totaling 10.3 trillion yen in central government funds aiming to add around 2 percentage points to Japan's real gross domestic product growth and create about 600,000 jobs.