On the price front, too, annual CPI inflation excluding fresh food and energy has been positive as a trend for about four years. Under QQE, Japan is no longer in deflation, which is generally defined as a sustained decline in prices. It seems that the monetary easing has exerted positive effects on individual firms in the form of improvement in funding conditions.
For example, dealing with house price booms in a region or country in the currency union will be an issue for macroprudential policy; a generalized credit boom, on the other hand, will likely be a matter of concern for monetary policy as well. 3.