Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the timing of the next interest rate hike was "approaching" as the economy was moving in line with the central bank's forecasts, the Nikkei newspaper reported, leaving open the chance of a December rate increase.

The next rate hike is “nearing in the sense that economic data are on track.” At the time of writing, the USD/JPY pair is trading around 150.26, up 0.42% on the day.

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said interest-rate hikes are “nearing” as inflation and economic trends develop in line with the central bank’s forecasts, without explicitly supporting an increase in December.

The yen weakened as much as 0.5% to ¥155.14 against the dollar as Ueda’s comments proved less hawkish than some market participants had expected.

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the next interest rate hikes are "nearing in the sense that economic data are on track," the Nikkei business daily reported on Saturday. "I would like to see what kind of momentum the fiscal 2025 shunto (spring wage negotiation) creates,