0444 GMT - The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates to 1% at its next meeting in April, based on the assumption that Middle East tensions will subside within about a month, SMBC Nikko Securities economists say. At last week's meeting, Gov. Kazuo Ueda highlighted the trend of aggressive corporate pricing behavior and noted his impression that many policy board members are prioritizing upside risks to underlying inflation. These remarks suggest that Ueda himself is leaning toward a focus on inflation overshoots, the economists say. (megumi.fujikawa@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 23, 2026 00:44 ET (04:44 GMT)

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