Standard Chartered Bank has stated that it expects the Bank of Japan to keep policy rates unchanged. BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda gave a dovish signal at the bank's first policy meeting in April, stating that there are unlikely to be any major policy adjustments in the near future. However, the bank believes that the BOJ has reason to change its policy. Since September 2022, Japan's core CPI inflation rate has remained above 3%, and wage growth in 2023 could exceed 3%. Additionally, with Japan posting strong first-quarter GDP growth, the bank may shift its focus to CPI instead of just economic growth. While not the bank's baseline expectation, it does not rule out the possibility that the BOJ may widen the yield-curve control (YCC) range at this meeting.