Organization: The Bank of Japan is likely to continue gradually raising interest rates every six months to one year.

Hirofumi Suzuki, Chief FX Strategist at SMBC Tokyo, said that the unexpected dissenting vote from longtime dovish Policy Board member Toshihito Anzai did not have a major impact on the foreign exchange market. Overall, the focus of the market had been on whether a 50 basis point rate hike would be proposed, but such a proposal did not materialize. In terms of future rate hikes, this is positive for risk asset prices as it suggests that the central bank is likely to avoid a significant rate hike. The Bank of Japan is likely to continue with its gradual pace of rate hikes every six months to a year. The possibility of bringing forward the timing of the next rate hike may arise in the event of accelerating inflation or a further weakening of the yen.