Bank of Japan meets on 17–18 September after holding at 1% in July

The Bank of Japan holds its next monetary policy meeting on 17 and 18 September 2026. The statement is normally released around midday Tokyo time on the second day, followed by the Governor's press conference in the afternoon.

Where policy stands

At its July meeting the BoJ kept its short-term policy rate at 1.00%. The decision was not unanimous: one board member, Hajime Takata, proposed raising the rate to 1.25% and was outvoted 8–1. In its quarterly outlook the bank projected core consumer price inflation of 2.5% for fiscal 2026.

September is not one of the BoJ's outlook meetings, so no new forecasts are due. Those are published four times a year, in January, April, July and October.

The intervention in between

On 3 August, Finance Minister Katayama Satsuki said Japan's Ministry of Finance had bought yen in coordination with the US Department of the Treasury on 31 July, US Eastern Time, to counter what she described as excessive volatility and disorderly movements in the currency. Joint action with the United States is rare. The statement said Japan stands ready for further joint intervention and plans to use the Federal Reserve's FIMA repo facility in the future.

On 14 September, USD/JPY was trading in the low 150s according to TradingView prices.

What to watch

1. The vote. Whether more members join the call for a higher rate.
2. Comments on the yen. A weaker yen raises import prices, which feeds into the inflation outlook the BoJ is weighing.
3. Timing against the Fed. The Federal Reserve announces its decision two days earlier, on 16 September, so the gap between US and Japanese policy will already have been updated when the BoJ speaks.

Background on how and why Japan steps into the currency market is in currency intervention explained.