Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is likely to want the Bank of Japan to stick with its current policy direction even after a change of governor, according to a senior ruling party member. Shouji Nishida, head of a pro-spending group in the party with ties to former premier Shinzo Abe, pointed to the fiscal policy plan published last week as proof that Kishida is more committed than previously thought to the BOJ’s inflation target. The policy draft released by the finance ministry reiterated the goal of achieving 2% inflation, as pursued by the central bank under Governor Haruhiko Kuroda. But this time it added the words ... (full story)