"BOJ Considers Policy Shift Amid Recession, FX Concerns, and Inflation"

Despite Japan's economy falling into recession, the Bank of Japan is still considering ending negative interest rates in the coming months, with a focus on annual wage negotiations and broader economic trends. The weak GDP figures may prompt the BOJ to wait until its April meeting to make a decision, allowing more time to assess the health of the economy. The central bank hopes for significant wage hikes to support household consumption and inflation, and is carefully signaling its plan to dismantle complex policies while avoiding rapid borrowing cost hikes. The BOJ may prefer to act in April rather than March to gather more data and gauge the economic outlook, with key data points including big firms' wage negotiations and the quarterly "tankan" survey.