0002 GMT - The yen consolidates against the dollar and other currencies ahead of BOJ policy board member Kazuyuki Masu's speech due later today. Masu is scheduled to meet with local leaders in Fukui, Japan. "Market participants will closely watch whether Masu validates the market's recent sharp upward reassessment of the BoJ's policy outlook," CBA's Carol Kong says in a research report. "We now expect the BoJ to raise its policy interest rate by 25bp next week," the economist and currency strategy adds. The U.S. dollar is little changed at 153.54 yen while the Australian dollar edges 0.1% lower to Y110.83, LSEG data show.