Japan Economic Weekly

Research evidence excerpt

Japan Economic Weekly

Global Markets Research

Japan Economic Weekly 8 July 2026

Economics - Japan

Examining the near-term outlook for consumption tax cuts and Research Analysts

the Basic Policy Japan Economics

Kyohei Morita - NSC

BOJ Policy Board member Ayano Sato avoids saying anything definite kyohei.morita@nomura.com

about her stance on monetary policy +81 3 6703 1395

1.Domesticpolicy(BOJ):PolicyBoardmemberAyanoSatoavoidssayinganything Masaki Kuwahara - NSC

definiteaboutherstanceonmonetarypolicy(UichiroNozaki) masaki.kuwahara@nomura.com

+81 3 6703 3876

• Professor Ayano Sato of Aoyama Gakuin University took up her position as a member

Kengo Tanahashi - NSC of the BOJ Policy Board on 30 June. Sato is viewed as a reflationist, hence the kengo.tanahashi@nomura.com

interest in her stance on monetary policy. +81 3 6703 1295

• At the press conference held when she took up her position as a member of the Policy Uichiro Nozaki - NSC

Board, Sato did not reveal her views on monetary conditions or the BOJ's conduct of uichiro.nozaki@nomura.com

monetary policy; nor did she say anything that might have suggested that she was a +81 3 6703 1284

reflationist. Our initial impression is that she is slightly more of a middle-of-the-roader Yuki Ito - NSC

than Policy Board member Toichiro Asada, who voted against a rate hike at the June yuki.ito@nomura.com

monetary policy meeting. +81 3 6703 3867

Yuna Minegishi - NSC2.Domesticpolicy(government):Near-termoutlookforconsumptiontaxcuts,

BasicPolicy,anddraftingofabudget(KengoTanahashi) yuna.minegishi@nomura.com

+81 3 6703 1287

• Late June saw a string of important fiscal-related announcements from the Takaichi

administration. However, it is still unclear what final form consumption tax cuts, one of