Bank of Japan Keeps Record Stimulus, Trims Inflation Outlook

The Bank of Japan refrained from increasing its monetary stimulus even as it trimmed its inflation outlook, as officials count on the economy pulling out a soft patch and consumer price gains accelerating toward its target.

The central bank will continue to expand the monetary base at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen ($648 billion), it said in a statement on Wednesday in Tokyo. It cut its inflation outlook for the fiscal year through March 2016 to 0.7 percent from 0.8 percent and forecast 1.9 percent for the next fiscal year.