BL: Japan's central bank holds interest rates steady
Japan's central bank kept its key interest rate near zero Friday and said it would redouble efforts to boost the world's No. 2 economy.
As widely expected, the Bank of Japan's policy board voted unanimously to leave its overnight call rate target at a super-low 0.1 percent. The bank has not tweaked the rate since December 2008.
The central bank said it would keep monetary policy "extremely accommodative" to help fight deflation. Government data released Friday showed that consumer prices fell for the 13th straight month in March.
Board members agreed the central bank needed to do more to "contribute to strengthening the foundations for economic growth."
As part of those efforts, Bank of Japan Gov. Masaaki Shirakawa has directed staff to find ways of financially supporting banks.
The central bank will release its semiannual economic outlook report later Friday.
