BOJ could raise rates every quarter, ex-policymaker says

By Leika Kihara and Takahiko Wada TOKYO, Sept 24 (Reuters) The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates roughly once every three months and push them up to 2% by around June next year to combat mounting inflationary pressures, former bank board member Makoto Sakurai ​said on Thursday. In raising interest rates to a 31-year high of 1.25% in September, the ‌central bank has shifted its policy approach to one increasingly focused on addressing broadening price pressures from surging fuel costs, he said. Government data shows Japan has seen the cost of importing crude oil spike around 70%-to-80% in recent months from levels before the US attack against Iran in February, which will boost consumer inflation ahead, Sakurai said. A weak yen and robust AI-related ‌demand ​are also boosting manufacturers profits, underpinning the economy and fuelling demand-driven price ⁠pressures, he said. The BOJ is well ⁠aware of such price pressures, which led to a sea change in the way it appro